Bola Ahmed Tinubu met with Claudio Descalzi, Chief Executive Officer of Eni, in Abuja to discuss the company’s operations in Nigeria and new initiatives aimed at strengthening deep offshore oil development. A key outcome of the meeting was the agreement between the Federal Government and Eni on the conversion of Oil Prospecting Licence 245, which resolves longstanding claims and ends arbitration proceedings at the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes.
The agreement converts the licence into two development leases, PML 102 and PML 103, and two exploration licences, PPL 2011 and PPL 2012, to be operated by Nigerian Agip Exploration Limited in partnership with Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited. The project will support development of the Zabazaba and Etan deepwater fields, with about 500 million barrels of reserves and an expected production capacity of 150,000 barrels per day through a floating production storage and offloading facility.
Discussions also covered Eni’s broader investment portfolio in Nigeria, including interests in the Abo and Bonga offshore fields and a 10.4 percent stake in Nigeria LNG Limited. The company, which has operated in Nigeria since 1962, currently produces about 55,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day and continues to expand investments in deepwater exploration, energy infrastructure, and community development programmes.
