Nigeria moves to unlock OPL 245 after Tinubu-backed deal

Nigeria has moved to clear the way for a new phase of offshore oil development after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu oversaw a settlement over the long-disputed OPL 245 block, according to ThisDay. The agreement, reached between the federal government, Eni and Nigerian Agip Exploration Limited, is being presented as a major step toward fresh deepwater investment.

The presidency said the settlement ends a dispute that has dragged on for more than 15 years and opens the path toward a final investment decision on the Zabazaba–Etan development. Officials say the project could eventually add around 150,000 barrels per day to Nigeria’s oil production capacity, though the precise timeline for that next phase has not yet been publicly detailed.

The move follows earlier reporting that Nigeria had restructured the controversial OPL 245 asset into four blocks to be operated by Eni and Shell, in a bid to end years of legal and commercial uncertainty around one of the country’s most valuable offshore reserves,as cited by secondary reports. The State House also described the March 5 agreement as part of a broader effort to resolve legacy disputes and improve investor confidence in the sector.

Presidential adviser Olu Arowolo-Verheijen said the revised settlement reflects the policy framework created under the Petroleum Industry Act and wider fiscal and governance reforms. The government says those reforms are aimed at making Nigeria’s upstream sector more predictable for investors while improving returns and safeguards for the federation.

For Abuja, the next step is no longer the dispute itself but whether the settlement translates into actual capital deployment, project approvals and eventual offshore production growth. That makes OPL 245 more than a legal closure; it is now a test of whether Nigeria’s reform drive can convert long-frozen assets into commercially viable projects. Official details from the Nigerian presidency are available via the State House.

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