By Ali Elias
The Federal Government has called on Renaissance Africa Energy to urgently ramp up crude oil production following its acquisition of Shell Petroleum Development Company’s (SPDC) onshore assets in Nigeria.
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, said this when he received the Renaissance Africa Energy management team in his office in Abuja.
Renaissance Africa Energy, a consortium comprising ND Western Limited, Aradel Holdings Plc, FIRST Exploration and Petroleum Development Company Limited, Waltersmith Group, and international firm Petrolin, recently completed the acquisition after securing regulatory approval.
“Having acquired Shell, the expectations are very high,” Lokpobiri said. “Nigerians are expecting that you will, within the shortest possible time, visibly show the expected changes by ramping up production, which we really need.”
The Minister emphasized that the previous operator, Shell, had shut down several wells and halted investments before the divestment. He urged Renaissance to re-enter every available well and increase Nigeria’s daily production, which has stagnated at around 1.5 million barrels, far below the 2025 budget benchmark of 2.1 million barrels.
Lokpobiri expressed optimism that the takeover of assets by Nigerian companies would lead to faster decision-making and stronger local industry growth. “Critical decisions will now be taken here in Nigeria, not from distant headquarters,” he stated.
He further highlighted the importance of partnerships to develop idle oil wells, saying, “If you have a well that you are not going to use, partner with those who have the technical and financial capacity so we can add to our barrels.”
“All our problems can be solved once we increase production. We have no business going to Saudi or the Middle East for resources. Once we produce more barrels, that means more money for every Nigerian,” Lokpobiri added.
In his response, Tony Attah, CEO of Renaissance Africa Energy, assured that the consortium is committed to exceeding Shell’s performance to develop Nigeria’s economy.
“Shell did its exploration and production to develop its own countries. But we, as Renaissance, are here to do it better and develop Nigeria,” Attah said. “It is time Nigeria takes center stage and leads Africa not just statistically but practically.”
The transfer of oil assets from international giants to indigenous firms marks a turning point for Nigeria’s energy sector. However, meeting high public and governmental expectations will require urgent, sustained action by Renaissance Africa Energy and strong oversight from regulatory authorities.