Nigeria Unlocks 50-Year-Old Gas Resource with $800M Ima Project FID
ABUJA, Nigeria — President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has welcomed an $800 million Final Investment Decision (FID) on the long-dormant Ima Gas Project. The decision, officially announced on September 23, 2026, marks the end of a five-decade delay for a vital energy asset and signals a massive win for domestic industrialization and economic growth.
The project is being spearheaded by Nigerian independent operator AMNI International in partnership with global energy giant TotalEnergies.
Unlocking Five Decades of Dormant Energy
The Ima gas field, located offshore within OMLs 112 and 117, was first discovered in 1973. Despite its massive potential to serve as a critical feedstock provider for Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG), the resource sat underground for 53 years due to a lack of viable commercial and fiscal frameworks.
At its peak, the revitalized Ima Gas Project is projected to deliver 300 million standard cubic feet of gas per day (mmscf/d).
“For more than fifty 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,” President Tinubu stated. “The Final Investment Decision on Ima demonstrates what is possible when we provide investors with a competitive, predictable, and enabling environment.”
Fast-Tracking Reforms in the Gas Sector
The Ima FID represents the fourth major gas project to reach this critical milestone under the current administration, following close on the heels of the Iseni, Ubeta, and HI project FIDs.
While the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) of 2021 laid the initial groundwork for industry restructuring, many legacy projects remained economically unfeasible. To break the gridlock, President Tinubu issued a series of targeted presidential directives in 2024 aimed at improving fiscal competitiveness for upstream investors, drastically shortening bureaucratic contracting timelines, and reducing overall project development costs.
Ms. Olu Arowolo Verheijen, Special Adviser to the President on Energy, highlighted that the regulatory overhaul was directly responsible for unlocking the asset. “A gas discovery made in 1973 can only contribute to prosperity when somebody invests the capital to develop it,” Verheijen noted. “That is the transition we are seeing today.”
A Win for Local Content and Finance
The execution of the Ima Gas Project highlights a significant shift toward indigenous leadership and local financing in Africa’s largest oil and gas market, ensuring an indigenous exploration and production company holds the majority interest in the offshore asset.
The president also notes that this will incentivize local financing, with Nigerian financial institutions mobilizing 77 percent of the project’s total financing.
The Tinubu administration also expects that the project will guarantee job creation, as it projects 60 percent of the construction and operational workforce will be sourced directly from local host communities, including Bonny, Finima, and Andoni in Rivers State.
The Bigger Picture: Putting Gas to Work
The administration’s broader energy roadmap focuses on transitioning Nigeria from a resource-rich nation into a processing powerhouse. Rather than treating gas merely as an export commodity, the strategy aims to channel the output from the Ima field to power domestic infrastructure, support fertilizer and petrochemical production, stabilize the national power grid, and boost foreign exchange earnings through LNG exports.
“Natural resources have value only when they are converted into opportunities for our people,” Tinubu concluded. “Our goal is to ensure that Nigeria’s gas powers Nigerian prosperity.”
