Wales Edun promises again: we expect investment of $7 billion in the oil and gas sector

Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Wale Edun, says the oil and gas sector has received an investment commitment of about N7 billion under the new incentive framework introduced by President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

Edun said this in a statement during a ministerial press conference in Abuja on Tuesday.

He said the investment had been dormant for years, waiting for the right economic conditions for an inflow.

What the minister said

He noted that President Tinubu’s initiatives in the energy sector have now mobilized these investments, stressing that these policies promote prosperity and create jobs.

He also highlighted CNG conversion programs as part of the administration’s policy framework to drive growth.

“And as mentioned earlier, the key issue in the case of CNG is the government’s policy not only on vehicles but also on generators. These must be CNG, solar or electric vehicles.

“This is a new incentive structure. This continues in the oil and gas sector as well. A new set of incentives has just been introduced to encourage new investments.

“We expect that $7 billion worth of investment will now flow in, which has been on the sidelines until now. It is similar in other sectors.

“A stable, growing economy attracts investment that increases productivity, further grows the economy, creates jobs and reduces poverty. This Is the trajectory that Nigeria is currently on.” Edun said.

History

In early March, Nairametrics reported that President Bola Tinubu had signed new executive orders aimed at improving the investment environment and making Nigeria the best choice for oil and gas investments across Africa.

The President issued this policy directive after extensive discussions with key stakeholders in the sector.

The initiative focused on optimizing the contracting process to reduce cycle time to six months.

What you should know

The Nigerian oil and gas industry, like other sectors, has lacked sufficient capital investment over the years due to factors such as insecurity, oil theft and policy inconsistency, among others.

For example, Nairametrics reported that TotalEnergys CEO Patrick Pouyanne said the company has decided to invest a whopping sum of $6 billion in energy projects in Angola and Nigeria.

According to Pouyanne, TotalEnergies has not explored for oil in the oil-rich Niger Delta region for 12 years.

Additionally, Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC) and other international oil companies (IOCs) are considering reshaping their portfolio as oil production in the Niger Delta is inconsistent with its health, safety and environmental policies.