By Ali Elias
Nigeria’s oil and gas industry is becoming more inviting to local and foreign investors, according to Renaissance Africa Energy Company. At the 50th anniversary of the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE), Managing Director Tony Attah highlighted that recent reforms are reshaping the sector and readying it for growth.
Attah credited three major reforms for the shift: the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act, and the rebranding of Nigeria’s oil company, NNPCL. He said these changes have helped build investor trust and fostered a pool of skilled Nigerian professionals.
He also pointed out that the new NNPCL board is filled with experienced leaders from international oil companies, which, he said, bolsters confidence among financiers. “When people give money to organizations, it’s not the asset they are financing—it’s the people,” Attah remarked.
Attah urged companies to maintain credible leadership teams to attract funding. He called on industry players to adopt Renaissance’s approach—highlighting the company’s acquisition of Shell’s Nigerian onshore assets—and to focus on long-term energy security and industrialization.
Other voices are echoing the optimism. At a recent energy conference, the NUPRC chief, Engr. Gbenga Komolafe, credited the PIA and Tinubu’s executive orders for kick-starting energy sector investments. He noted that in just two years, Nigeria has attracted over $16 billion in new oil and gas investment and is steadily growing daily crude production.
Nationally and globally, oil and gas leaders are calling for further policy updates. Attah has criticized the PIA for being outdated—pointing out that the law doesn’t cover important trends like digitalization or artificial intelligence. He believes it needs urgent revision to align with current realities.
Renaissance Energy’s bold moves are already underway. They plan a massive $15 billion investment over five years to develop infrastructure across Nigeria’s Niger Delta. This includes expanding oil output, ramping up domestic gas supply, boosting exports, and creating local jobs.
In recent developments, Renaissance finalized a pivotal $2.4 billion acquisition of Shell’s onshore Nigerian assets. While this signals new opportunities for local leadership, environmental groups continue to urge caution, demanding accountability for past pollution issues.