By: Tunji Okunlola
Nigeria is positioning itself as one of Africa’s top draws for oil and gas capital, with as much as $30 billion to $50 billion expected to pour into 22 major offshore projects slated to begin before the end of the decade, according to a new report from Industrial Info Resources.
The report tracks more than 800 active capital projects spanning oil and gas production, pipelines and terminals across the continent, together worth over $221 billion. Within that broader picture, it highlights the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission’s (NUPRC) expectation that 22 major offshore developments will get underway in Nigeria by 2030, carrying an estimated investment potential in the $30bn–$50bn range.
That figure was first floated by NUPRC’s Chief Executive, Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, at the Society of Petroleum Engineers’ annual conference in Lagos on August 5. Eyesan noted that the regulator has signed off on more than $57 billion worth of field development plans since 2024, with some of these already converting into final investment decisions.
Industrial Info Resources attributes the surge in interest across Africa’s energy sector to mounting concerns over energy security and shifting geopolitical currents. The report suggests that a number of upstream and LNG projects which had previously received approval but stalled are now poised to move toward first production as investors recalibrate in response to global energy shifts.
Gordon Gorrie, the firm’s Senior Vice-President of Research for Oil & Gas, said the investment wave extends well beyond Nigeria, with multiple African nations ramping up spending on production, midstream infrastructure and related energy projects. He described the coming 12 to 18 months as a pivotal window for major African oil and gas ventures, with several long-delayed developments finally advancing toward production.
According to Gorrie, the bulk of this spending will target offshore oil developments, with a portion also directed toward new LNG liquefaction capacity. He linked the renewed appetite for African energy assets partly to volatility in international markets, suggesting that global geopolitical tensions have pushed buyers of LNG to look toward Africa as an alternative to Middle Eastern supply sources.
Among the standout projects cited in the report is Mozambique LNG, being developed by TotalEnergies, which is expected to play a major role in the continent’s growing investment story. The project, designed for an annual output of 12.9 million tonnes, is targeted for completion in 2030. Separately, ExxonMobil is reportedly aiming for a final investment decision in 2026 on the Rovuma LNG project also in Mozambique which is expected to have an 18-million-tonne annual capacity.
Industrial Info Resources put Africa’s overall oil and gas investment outlook for the year at $41 billion, with continental oil production projected to hit 11.4 million barrels per day.
On Nigeria specifically, the report noted that crude output rose to 1.71 million barrels per day in the twelve months to April 2026. It also referenced projections from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited’s management suggesting the country could add a further 100,000 barrels per day in output by the close of 2026.
Shell’s Bonga/Southwest/Aparo complex was flagged as another key deepwater project in Nigeria, expected to yield around 150,000 barrels of crude per day once operational.
The renewed wave of investment interest comes as the Federal Government continues efforts to draw more capital into the sector, with President Bola Tinubu having signed a series of executive orders intended to improve the investment climate and boost activity in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.