By Dennis Okechukwu
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has welcomed the $800 million Final Investment Decision (FID) on the Ima Gas Project, describing it as a major step towards unlocking Nigeria’s vast gas resources for investment, industrialisation, job creation and economic growth.
The Ima Gas Project, 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.
The Ima gas resource, located offshore in Oil Mining Leases (OMLs) 112 and 117, was discovered in 1973 but remained undeveloped for more than five decades.
The Federal Government said the resource, despite its significant reserves and potential to provide feedgas to Nigeria LNG Limited, had remained underground and unable to make a meaningful contribution to the economy until the FID announced on Wednesday.
The project is the fourth major gas project to reach FID since Tinubu assumed office, following the Iseni, Ubeta and HI projects.
Tinubu said the development demonstrated the impact of reforms aimed at creating a more competitive and predictable investment environment in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.
“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,” the President said.
“Our responsibility has been to create the conditions that turn Nigeria’s natural resources into productive investments and economic opportunities.”
He added that the government was determined to unlock more of the country’s gas resources to power industries, expand exports, create jobs and promote long-term economic growth.
Since taking office, Tinubu has prioritised reforms intended to reverse years of underinvestment in the oil and gas industry.
While the Petroleum Industry Act of 2021 provided a regulatory framework for the sector, the Presidency said several projects remained undeveloped because of fiscal and commercial challenges.
In 2024, Tinubu issued a series of Presidential Directives, developed by a team led by his Special Adviser on Energy, Olu Verheijen, aimed at improving fiscal competitiveness, reducing contracting timelines and lowering project costs.
Verheijen said the Ima project illustrated the objective of the reforms.
“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,” she said.
She noted that a gas discovery made in 1973 could only contribute to national prosperity when capital was invested to develop it, financial institutions supported it, contractors built the facilities and Nigerians worked on the project.
The Presidency also highlighted the increasing participation of Nigerian companies and financial institutions in the project.
AMNI International, a Nigerian-owned exploration and production company, holds a majority interest in the asset, while Nigerian financial institutions have arranged 77 per cent of the project’s financing.
About 60 per cent of the project workforce is expected to come from host communities, including Bonny, Finima and Andoni in Rivers State.
The Federal Government said the project was part of its broader gas strategy, which seeks to use Nigeria’s large gas reserves to support LNG exports and foreign exchange earnings, provide feedstock for industries, enable fertiliser and petrochemical production, improve power supply and create opportunities for Nigerian businesses and workers.
“Natural resources have value only when they are converted into opportunities for our people,” Tinubu said. “Our goal is to ensure that Nigeria’s gas powers Nigerian prosperity.”