Business
Deep offshore incentive order will accelerate investment, production growth — NNPC
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) has applauded the Federal Government’s signing of the Deep Offshore Oil and Gas Projects Incentives (Tax Remission) Order, 2026, describing it as a landmark reform that will enhance Nigeria’s competitiveness for deep offshore investment.
President Bola Tinubu approved the order on Tuesday as part of efforts to attract large-scale investments into Nigeria’s deep offshore oil and gas sector.
In a statement issued on Thursday, NNPC said the new order establishes a transparent, predictable, and globally competitive fiscal framework for qualifying greenfield deep-offshore developments.
The company said the framework would provide the certainty required to unlock long-term capital, accelerate Final Investment Decisions (FIDs) and maximise value from Nigeria’s offshore resources.
The order is expected to support Nigeria’s ambition of increasing crude oil production to 3 million barrels per day (MMbopd) by 2030.
Framework to unlock offshore investments
President Tinubu, while announcing the approval on Tuesday, said the new incentive framework could unlock up to $50 billion in deep offshore investments, beginning with the approximately $10 billion Bonga South West project.
“I have signed the Deep Offshore Oil and Gas Projects Incentives (Tax Remission) Order, 2026, creating a clear and predictable framework capable of unlocking up to $50 billion in deep offshore investment, beginning with the approximately $10 billion Bonga South West project,” Mr Tinubu said.
The policy aims to make previously stalled offshore projects commercially viable by providing investors with tax incentives and greater certainty regarding the fiscal terms governing their investments.
According to NNPC, the framework is expected to reinforce Nigeria’s position as an attractive destination for deep-offshore oil and gas development and unlock more than $50 billion in new investment.
It said the expected investments include major projects such as Bonga South West, Zabazaba and Owowo Deep Offshore developments.
Bonga South West, which was approved in March 2026, is expected to be the first Final Investment Decision on a Nigerian deepwater Production Sharing Contract asset since 2008.
‘Transformative reform’
The Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Ltd., Bashir Ojulari, described the order as one of the most significant policy interventions in Nigeria’s upstream sector in recent years.
“This is a transformative reform that sends a strong signal to global investors that Nigeria is committed to providing a stable, competitive and investment-friendly environment for deep offshore development,” Mr Ojulari said.
“Fiscal certainty is a critical driver of investment decisions, and this framework provides the additional clarity the industry has long sought,” he added.
Mr Ojulari said the order aligns with NNPC’s strategy of protecting existing production, accelerating near-term growth and attracting new investments into high-value assets.
“For NNPC Ltd., the Order aligns directly with our strategy of protecting our existing production base, accelerating near-term growth, and attracting new investment into high-value assets,” he said.
He said the reform strengthens the company’s confidence in achieving its 3 MMbopd production ambition while creating greater value for its shareholders and the Nigerian economy.
Mr Ojulari said recent reforms across Nigeria’s petroleum sector had already stimulated more than $34 billion in new investment commitments.
READ ALSO: NNPC posts ₦535 billion profit, records 1.72 million barrels daily oil output in June
He said the Deep Offshore Incentives Order would build on the momentum by enabling timely FIDs on strategic offshore developments.
The NNPC chief executive commended President Tinubu for his commitment to creating an enabling environment for investment and sustainable growth in Nigeria’s energy sector through a series of presidential executive orders.
The company said the latest reform reinforces its commitment to driving sustainable production growth, attracting responsible investment, strengthening Nigeria’s energy security and delivering long-term value to the Federation.
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Nigeria’s headline inflation rate edged down to 14.63 per cent in September, from 15.39 per cent a month earlier, official data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Thursday, as the pace of increase in price levels continues to slow in Africa’s most populous country.
The development extends the downward trend in annual consumer inflation recorded in recent months, with inflation dropping marginally to 15.39 per cent in August from 15.43 per cent in July.
Food inflation stood at 19.59 per cent year-on-year in September, slightly higher than the 19.57 per cent recorded in August, but lower than the 20.16 per cent reported in September 2025.
Food accounts for a substantial share of household expenditure, particularly among lower-income households.
Core inflation, which excludes volatile items like agricultural produce and energy prices, stood at 12.95 per cent year-on-year in September, down from 13.29 per cent in August and 22.11 per cent in September 2025.
The annual figure indicates a continued slowdown in price increases outside the more volatile food and energy components.
The divergence between the annual and monthly figures suggests that, although underlying inflation has moderated considerably over the past year, some price pressures persisted during September.
Despite the slowdown in inflationary pressures, Nigeria continues to face a cost-of-living crisis, principally on account of elevated food prices and energy costs, which have hammered the disposable income of many households.
The drop in living standards has been fuelled by tough economic reforms introduced by the current administration, including the removal of fuel subsidies, devaluation of the naira and a prolonged hawkish monetary policy stance.
The statistics office’s data also reflected differences between inflation in urban and rural areas.
READ ALSO: CBN restates single-digit inflation target as FG woos investors with tax credits
Urban inflation stood at 15.64 per cent year-on-year in September, down from 20.63 per cent in the corresponding month of 2025. Rural inflation was lower at 12.46 per cent year-on-year, compared with 21.06 per cent in September 2025.
What the figures mean
The September data point to a further slowdown in Nigeria’s inflation rate, with annual headline inflation falling for another month.
A fall in annual inflation means that prices are rising more slowly than they did over the corresponding period a year earlier. A negative monthly rate, such as the September food inflation figure, means that average prices in the measured basket declined compared with the previous month.
With annual food inflation still at 19.59 per cent, the September figures show that the pace of food price increases has moderated over the past year, while the average cost of food remains higher than it was a year ago.
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