Flash: Fresh Update Unfolds over NNPC Ltd/TotalEnergies’ $550 Million Ubeta Upstream Gas Project

Flash: Fresh Update Unfolds over NNPC Ltd/TotalEnergies’ $550 Million Ubeta Upstream Gas Project

The $550 million upstream gas project between the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC ) and TotalEnergies on the development of the Ubeta field has taken off, the Presidency announced on Tuesday.

Special Adviser to the President on Energy, Olu Verheijen, disclosed this during an inaugural US-Nigeria Strategic Energy Dialogue, hosted by the U.S. State Department in Washington, DC.

The signing ceremony of the $550 million Final Investment Decision (FID) on the Ubeta Field Development Project took place in Abuja in June this year. The Ubeta field discovered in 1964, is located northwest of Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

Speaking at a luncheon organized as part of the inaugural US-Nigeria Strategic Energy Dialogue, Verheijen said the upstream gas project would deliver 350 million standard cubic feet of gas per day when operational.

Verheijen added that major energy reforms introduced by President Bola Tinubu since June 2023 focused on improving energy security, attracting investments, and deepening collaboration with key partners, including the US government.

She said the key reforms had improved the viability of the gas-to-power value chain of the country.

The reforms, according to her, included initiatives to improve cash flows in electricity distribution through smart metering and the payment of outstanding debts owed investors and to reduce carbon emissions from gas production.

She disclosed that the President issued five new executive orders to support the reform efforts, aimed at providing fiscal incentives for investment and reducing the cost and time of finalizing and implementing contracts to develop and expand gas infrastructure.