OPL 245 Settlement to Inject 150,000bpd into National Output

The 15-year legal stalemate over Oil Prospecting Lease (OPL) 245 has finally ended, clearing the way for a massive deepwater expansion. Bayo Ojulari, Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Limited, confirmed on Saturday that a historic settlement between the Federal Government, Eni, and Nigerian Agip Exploration (NAEL) will now trigger the Zabazaba-Etan project. This development is expected to add 150,000 barrels per day (bpd) to Nigeria’s crude oil production, a critical injection as the country struggles to meet its OPEC quotas and fiscal targets.

The breakthrough follows a meeting on March 5 at the Presidential Villa, where President Bola Tinubu oversaw the signing of the agreement. The deal converts the long-disputed OPL 245 into two development licences, Petroleum Mining Leases (PML) 102 and 103, and two exploration licences. This structural reset removes the “Malabu” legacy risk that has kept billions of dollars in capital stranded since 2011. By splitting the asset, the government has de-risked the field, allowing Eni to deploy fast-track development technologies.

The Zabazaba-Etan project is one of Nigeria’s most significant untapped offshore assets, leveraging approximately 500 million barrels of oil reserves. Its development plan centers on a Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) facility with a processing capacity of 150,000 bpd. Beyond crude, the project is slated to export 200 million standard cubic feet of gas per day at peak, primarily directed toward Nigeria LNG to support global energy exports.

This resolution is a cornerstone of the administration’s drive to reach a production target of 2.5 million bpd in 2026. Presidential Adviser on Energy, Olu Verheijen, noted that the revised terms offer a “balanced outcome” that aligns with the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA). Unlike the flawed 2011 agreement, the current settlement ensures stronger safeguards for the Federation while providing the “clarity and predictability” required for investors to reach a Final Investment Decision (FID).

President Tinubu has used the settlement to signal a “transparent” new era for the Nigerian upstream sector. The OPL 245 saga, once a symbol of global litigation and opacity, is now being repositioned as a test of Nigeria’s reform maturity. By resolving the dispute out of court and discontinuing international arbitration at the ICSID, the government has cleared a major hurdle to restoring investor confidence in Africa’s largest oil producer.

With the legal path cleared, the focus now shifts to the technical execution of the Zabazaba-Etan field. Analysts suggest that the project will not only boost foreign exchange earnings but also stimulate local content through fabrication and job creation. As rig counts across Nigeria surge to 50, the activation of PML 102 and 103 marks the beginning of a major deepwater push that could finally stabilise Nigeria’s volatile energy revenues.