President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has welcomed the $800 million Final Investment Decision, FID, for the Ima Gas Project, saying the development will unlock a gas resource that has remained undeveloped for more than five decades.
The offshore project, being developed by Nigerian independent oil and gas company AMNI International in partnership with TotalEnergies, is expected to produce about 300 million standard cubic feet of gas per day at peak production and support industrial and economic activity in Nigeria.
The Ima gas resource, located in Oil Mining Leases, OMLs, 112 and 117 offshore, was discovered in 1973 but remained undeveloped despite its significant reserves and potential to supply feed gas to Nigeria LNG Limited.
The $800 million FID, announced on Wednesday, September 23, clears the way for development of the project, with the Presidency saying it is expected to support investment, industrialization, job creation and economic growth.
The Ima project is the fourth major gas development to reach FID since Tinubu assumed office, following the Iseni, Ubeta and HI projects.
Tinubu, in a statement issued on Wednesday by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said the development reflected the impact of reforms introduced by his administration to improve the investment climate in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
“For more than fifty years, the gas beneath Ima remained a resource with enormous potential, but potential alone does not create jobs, finance businesses or improve the lives of our people.
“Our responsibility has been to create the conditions that turn Nigeria’s natural resources into productive investments and economic opportunities,” the President said.
“The Final Investment Decision on Ima demonstrates what is possible when we provide investors with a competitive, predictable and enabling environment.
“We are determined to unlock more of Nigeria’s gas resources to power our industries, expand our exports, create jobs and build lasting prosperity for our people,” he added.
The Presidency said the project also highlighted the growing role of Nigerian companies and financial institutions in financing and executing major upstream petroleum developments.
AMNI International, a Nigerian-owned exploration and production company, holds a majority interest in the asset, while Nigerian financial institutions arranged 77 per cent of the project’s financing.
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About 60 per cent of the project’s workforce is expected to be drawn from host communities, including Bonny, Finima and Andoni in Rivers State.
The Presidency said Tinubu had prioritized reforms since assuming office to reverse years of under investment in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.
It noted that although the Petroleum Industry Act of 2021 provided a foundation for the sector, several undeveloped projects still lacked the fiscal and commercial conditions needed to attract investment.
Tinubu issued a series of directives in 2024, following recommendations from a team led by the Special Adviser to the President on Energy, aimed at improving fiscal competitiveness, shortening contracting timelines and reducing project costs.
Special Adviser to the President on Energy, Olu Verheijen, said the Ima project demonstrated the practical outcome the reforms were designed to achieve.
“The story of Ima is ultimately the story of what our reforms are designed to achieve. Nigeria has never lacked resources. The challenge has been creating the commercial and investment conditions required to move those resources from beneath the ground into projects that employ Nigerians, create opportunities for Nigerian businesses, generate revenues and support economic growth,” Verheijen said.
“A gas discovery made in 1973 can only contribute to prosperity when somebody invests the capital to develop it, banks finance it, contractors build it, Nigerians work on it, and the gas is ultimately put to productive use. That is the transition we are seeing today,” she added.
The Presidency said the Ima project forms part of a broader strategy to convert Nigeria’s extensive gas reserves into productive economic assets rather than leave significant volumes undeveloped.
Under the strategy, increased gas production is expected to support liquefied natural gas exports and foreign exchange earnings, provide feed stock for industries, boost fertilizer and petrochemical production, and contribute to a more reliable electricity supply.
The strategy is also expected to create opportunities for Nigerian businesses, contractors and workers across the gas value chain.
Tinubu said his administration’s objective was to ensure that the country’s natural resources translated into economic opportunities and improved living standards for Nigerians.
“Natural resources have value only when they are converted into opportunities for our people. Our goal is to ensure that Nigeria’s gas powers Nigerian prosperity,” the President said.
The Nation
