Success Nwogu 
The Chief Executive Officer, Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria (MEMAN), Mr. Clement Isong, has said that the private sector is key for Nigeria to increase its foreign direct investment in the oil and gas sector.
He advised authorities to continue to consult and listen to the private sector as a veritable strategy to increasing the nation’s FDI in the sector.
In an interview with New Telegraph over the weekend, he also said it is important to identify and address impediments to investment. Isong said: “You must remember that we are competing with other investment destinations.
So, it is extremely important that those tasked with the responsibility continue to consult with and listen to the private sector and identify and understand the impediments to investment to ensure that once those impediments are carried over, we will increase in investments.”
Recall that the Executive Vice President, Upstream, Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd), Mr. Udy Ntia, recently said the nation’s oil and gas industry attracted about $17 billion foreign investment in 2024 as a result of the implementation of and a number of Executive Orders that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu signed in 2023 to liberalise the industry.
According to a recent statement, by Chief Corporate Communications Officer, NNPC Ltd, Mr. Olufemi Soneye, Ntia, spoke during a session with investors at the 2025 CERAWeek by S&P Global in Houston, Texas, United States.
Soneye said Ntia also disclosed that the Petroleum Industry Act 2021 and the series of Executive Orders signed by President Bola Tinubu in 2023 significantly liberalized the regulatory framework, offering incentives for cost recovery, royalty payments, and profit-sharing mechanisms.
He added that Nigeria recorded $16 billion to $17 billion in foreign investment inflows in 2024.
Ntia urged global investors to direct their attention to the Nigerian oil and gas sector as the nation is now an investors’ haven owing to the robust regulatory reforms and the investment-friendly policies of the Tinubu’s administration.
He said that Nigeria was well-positioned as a safe and attractive destination for investment as the nation is currently expanding its oil and gas industry to meet rising global energy demand driven by geopolitical tensions and the energy policies of the US administration.
He appealed to foreign investors, especially from China and India, to explore the investment opportunities in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.
He recalled the country’s large crude oil reserves (over 37 billion barrels) and flexible investment models, including joint ventures and productionsharing contracts.
He identifies some of the areas with huge investment opportunities in the country to include the refining and gas sub-sectors.
According to him, Nigeria was keen on expanding it refining capacity to reduce dependency on imports, even as it is also interested in tapping into the nation’s vast gas reserves of about 207trillion cubic feet (TCF) to drive industrialisation and economic growth.
Ntia said there are high hopes for Nigeria to attract more FDI. He said: “For us in Nigeria, despite global energy security concerns, including those in Europe, we see significant opportunities.
We have strategically positioned our assets to leverage the current strong price environment, which has remained favourable over the past two to three years.
As a result, we anticipate substantial investment inflows into the sector. “Gas will play a critical role in Nigeria’s energy future. We are expanding our gas infrastructure in collaboration with partners such as Shell, ENI, and Total.
Our LNG Train 7 project is advancing, and we are investing in domestic pipeline networks to meet local energy demands.
