Nigeria: Tinubu issues new directives to improve investment in oil & gas

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President Bola Tinubu has issued new policy directives designed to improve the investment climate and position Nigeria as the preferred investment destination for the oil & gas sector in Africa.

A statement issued on Wednesday by Ajuri Ngelale, Special Adviser to the President (Media & Publicity), said the measure was in keeping with his “dedicated efforts to remove obstacles to investments in Nigeria, harness the nation’s resources and diversify the economy for the benefit of all Nigerians.”

The statement said that following extensive engagements, analyses, and benchmarking with other jurisdictions, the president initiated the amendment of primary legislation to introduce fiscal incentives for oil & gas projects, reduce contracting costs and timelines, and promote cost efficiency in local content requirements.

It added that recognizing the urgency to accelerate investments, the President has directed as follows: “Introduction of fiscal incentives for non-associated gas, midstream and deepwater developments.

“Streamlining of contracting process to compress the contracting cycle to six months.

“The application of the local content requirements without hindering investments or the cost competitiveness.”

According to the statement, the details of the policy directives will be gazetted and communicated by the Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation.

It informed that the incentives were developed in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Justice, Federal Ministry of Finance, Federal Ministry of Petroleum, Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, Federal Inland Revenue Service, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, and the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board.

The president directed his Special Adviser on Energy to continue to coordinate the aforementioned stakeholders to ensure the implementation of the directives within a stipulated timeframe.