Earlier on Tuesday, Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production
Company Limited (SNEPCo), a subsidiary of Shell plc, announced an FID on the HI
offshore gas project in Nigeria.

The decision, taken in partnership with Sunlink Energies and
Resources Limited, saw the injection of $2 billion in the shallow offshore HI
field in OML 144.

Reacting to the development, the presidency said President
Bola Tinubu welcomed Shell’s fresh investment, describing it as a validation of
his reform agenda.

According to Bayo Onanuga, the president’s special adviser
on information and strategy, Tinubu reiterated his administration’s commitment
to creating an enabling environment for Nigeria’s domestic and foreign
investors.

Onanuga said the announcement brings “total significant
upstream investment commitments through FIDs in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector to
over $8 billion since Tinubu assumed office in 2023, underscoring the success
of his reform agenda and the renewed confidence of global investors”.

“This investment decision is Nigeria’s third major oil and
gas FID in the last 18 months, following the Ubeta Non-Associated Gas project
and the Bonga North deepwater project,” the statement reads.

“It marks yet another milestone in Nigeria’s journey to
unlock its abundant gas resources for domestic and export use. The Ubeta and HI
gas projects can supply up to 15 percent of the NLNG’s total feedgas
requirements, covering Trains 1 to 7.”

Onanuga said Tinubu has, since 2024, introduced targeted
directives as part of the industry reforms led by the office of the special
adviser to the president on energy.

He said the directives have introduced “unprecedented”
fiscal incentives, regulatory clarity, simplified operating processes, cutting
contracting costs, and reducing approval cycle times.

“These reforms, now embedded in legislation, have restored
investor confidence and repositioned Nigeria as a competitive investment
destination,” he said.

“The three landmark FIDs — the HI and Ubeta gas projects,
and Bonga North deepwater — represent blueprint projects selected and unlocked
by the Federal Government to drive the implementation of the presidential
directives.

“Specifically, the development of the HI gas
field—discovered four decades ago, in 1985—is being enabled by Presidential
Directive 40, which introduced a competitive fiscal framework for
Non-Associated Gas in onshore and shallow offshore fields.”

Olu Arowolo Verheijen, special adviser to the president on
energy, said the Ubeta and HI FIDs have secured the gas supply required to make
the NLNG Train 7 project not only possible but transformative.

She said the projects would enhance the reliability of
Nigeria’s LNG exports to global markets while expanding LPG supply for domestic
use.

This, the special adviser said, would help to reduce
imports, boost foreign exchange (FX) earnings, and “advance clean cooking
access for millions of Nigerian households”.

“This is only the beginning; more FIDs are on the horizon,
proving that with the right policies in place, investment and impact follow,”
Verheijen said.

According to the statement, the NLNG Train 7 project is
expected to boost Nigeria’s LNG production capacity by 8 million metric tonnes
annually, representing a 35 percent increase from current output.

The presidency noted that the project will strengthen
Nigeria’s position in the global gas market, enhance domestic gas availability,
create jobs, drive economic growth, and stimulate small and medium enterprises
(SMEs) in host communities.