TotalEnergies and AMNI International have signed a US$800 million Final Investment Decision (FID) for the development of the Ima gas field, straddling OML 112 and 117 offshore licenses in Nigeria.
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Located in shallow waters close to Bonny Island, the Ima gas field will be developed with a single platform, connected through a 22 km pipeline to Nigeria LNG.
Production start-up is expected in 2028, with a plateau of 350 million cubic feet of gas per day (representing over 60,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day).
Once on stream, the Ima field will supply about one-third of the gas required for the ongoing Nigeria LNG Train 7 expansion project, which will increase the liquefaction plant capacity from 22 million tons per annum (Mtpa) to 30 Mtpa.
In a press release on Wednesday, TotalEnergies stated that Ima is a low-cost and low-emissions development, with a simplified platform design, electric power supply from shore, no flaring, and permanent methane detection and monitoring.
“We are very pleased to announce the FID for the Ima gas project, marking a new milestone in the deployment of our integrated gas strategy in Nigeria. After the Ubeta project sanctioned in 2024 and expected to start-up next year, Ima demonstrates again our ability to unlock new low-cost and low-emissions gas resources, following the incentives introduced by the Nigerian Government for non-associated gas developments”, saidNicolas Terraz, President Exploration & Production at TotalEnergies. “This new project will contribute significantly to Nigeria LNG gas supply and create lasting value for its partners and for Nigeria.”
The development marked the latest major commitment by international and indigenous energy companies to Nigeria’s upstream sector. This followed a series of regulatory and fiscal reforms introduced by the federal government to improve the investment environment in the last three years.
THISDAY reported that Nigerian financial institutions arranged 77 per cent of the project’s financing, with around 60 per cent of the project workforce expected to come from host communities, including Bonny, Finima, and Andoni, all in Rivers State.
The financial partners include Zenith Bank, Access Bank, United Bank for Africa, Guaranty Trust Bank, Standard Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Delivering his welcome remarks at the FID signing ceremony, Managing Director of TotalEnergies EP Nigeria, Mathieu Bouyer, described the investment as a major vote of confidence in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry and the country’s investment environment.
Bouyer said, “The FID confirms that technically, commercially, legally and (in terms of) regulatory, we are all set and all geared to invest in a new adventure, a new project in full trust and full confidence…it’s a clear vote of confidence in Nigeria and its oil and gas industry and also in the potential of the oil and gas people of this country.”
Bouyer stated, “This decision also reflects the progress made in Nigeria’s investment environment. I would particularly like to recognise the leadership of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, that enabled and made it possible through a number of reforms of the executive orders that were issued two years ago, and one specifically on the non-associated gas sector.
“These measures have improved the competitiveness of Nigeria’s oil and gas sector and supported the investment conditions for projects such as Ubeta that we launched two years ago, and also Ima gas that we are launching today.”
Executive Chairman of AMNI International, Tunde Afolabi, said the FID fulfilled a commitment made when the two companies signed Heads of Terms in Houston in May 2024.
Afolabi said the project demonstrated the value of trust and partnership between an indigenous Nigerian company and an international energy major.
According to him, the next phase would focus on safe execution, adherence to schedule, and project economics, environmental responsibility, host-community engagement and increased participation by Nigerian companies and professionals.
Afolabi stated, “Ima is not only a commercial development for our joint venture. Its gas will provide material feedstock to Nigeria LNG and support the additional capacity being created through Train 7… By converting discovered gas into production, export earnings, government revenue and Nigerian business activity, Ima gives practical expression to Nigeria’s gas-development ambitions.”
He stated that the FID was also enabled by deliberate action from the federal government, especially the fiscal and policy measures introduced for offshore non-associated gas, together with the engagement of the relevant regulators and agencies.
In a statement, President Bola Tinubu welcomed the FID by the French oil giant and the Nigerian independent producer, describing it as another milestone in efforts to unlock stranded gas resources and turn them into investment, jobs, industrial activity, and economic opportunities.
Tinubu stated, “For more than 50 years, the gas beneath Ima remained a resource with enormous potential, but potential alone does not create jobs, finance businesses or improve the lives of our people.
“Our responsibility has been to create the conditions that turn Nigeria’s natural resources into productive investments and economic opportunities.
“The Final Investment Decision on Ima demonstrates what is possible when we provide investors with a competitive, predictable and enabling environment. We are determined to unlock more of Nigeria’s gas resources to power our industries, expand our exports, create jobs, and build lasting prosperity for our people.”
Since assuming office on May 29, 2023, the president said he had prioritised reforms to reverse years of underinvestment in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, as several undeveloped projects lacked the fiscal and commercial conditions needed to become viable.
Nnamdi Maduakor is a Writer, Investor and Entrepreneur
