The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has urged international investors to take advantage of the country’s vast energy resources, describing Nigeria as the continent’s top destination for oil and gas investment.

The Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Ltd., Bayo Ojulari, made the call on Tuesday during the Energy Talk segment of the 2025 Gastech Exhibition and Conference in Milan, Italy.

The statement was contained in a release signed by the Chief Corporate Communications Officer of NNPC Ltd., Andy Odeh, on September 9.

He explained that the Federal Government sought the investment to boost industrialisation and strengthen Nigeria’s position in the global energy market.

“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has improved Nigeria’s investment climate and positioned the country as the preferred investment destination for the energy sector in Africa,” he stated.

According to him, the plan aimed to scale up Nigeria’s natural gas production to 12 billion cubic feet per day and expand refinery capacity to meet rising global demand.

“We were seeking at least 60 billion dollars in investment over the next five to seven years, which for our oil and gas industry was just the tip of the iceberg. We sought investors to grow production,” he said.

He explained that while some investors had already entered the market with gas-based industries such as petrochemicals and methanol plants, more capital was still needed.

“We require additional investments to build infrastructure to support the Federal Government’s aspiration to power the nation’s transportation sector with Compressed Natural Gas (CNG),” he said.

Speaking on oil reserves, the GCEO noted that “apart from gas, our existing crude oil assets have huge untapped reservoirs for investors to tap into to boost production beyond the current 1.7 million barrels per day. We also have over 200 undeveloped oil fields with enormous potential.”

Ojulari also highlighted NNPC Ltd.’s ongoing initiatives to attract partners.

“We are investing heavily in carbon capture projects as well as technology to enhance energy efficiency and reduce gas flaring, in line with the objectives of our financing partners,” he said.

According to him, critical projects such as the Ajaokuta–Kaduna–Kano (AKK) gas pipeline and the NLNG Train 7 were already at advanced stages. He further stressed that Nigeria’s energy transition strategy was built around gas and Liquefied Petroleum Gas.

“Our focus is on eradicating energy poverty, which requires enormous investments in gas as the fuel of choice for industrialisation and LPG as domestic cooking gas for the over six million Africans who lack access to clean energy,” Ojulari said.

The Gastech conference drew more than 50,000 professionals and 1,000 exhibitors from 150 countries, making it one of the largest global platforms where energy leaders deliberate on the future of the industry. (The PUNCH)

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