Nigeria has split the long-disputed OPL 245 deepwater oil block into four separate assets to be co-developed by Shell and Eni, unlocking what could be one of Africa’s most consequential oil developments in decades. Final contracts are expected to be signed beginning Monday, according to a source familiar with the matter who requested anonymity ahead of an official government announcement.
Estimated to hold as many as 9 billion barrels of oil, OPL 245 has sat entirely untapped for nearly three decades — paralysed by overlapping lawsuits across multiple jurisdictions and the shadow of one of the petroleum industry’s most closely watched corruption trials. ‘This has been one of the longest-running disputes in African energy history,’ said one Lagos-based oil sector analyst. ‘Getting it into production would be transformational for Nigeria’s output ambitions.’
The block’s troubled history dates to 1998, when the licence was originally awarded to Malabu Oil and Gas, a company linked to Dan Etete, who served as petroleum minister under military ruler Sani Abacha. The licence was later transferred to Shell and Eni in a $1.3 billion deal. Italian prosecutors subsequently alleged that most of the purchase price was funnelled to politicians and intermediaries rather than Nigeria’s public coffers, triggering a landmark criminal trial in Milan. All defendants — including Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi — were acquitted in 2021 after denying all wrongdoing.
Splitting the block into four operating units is seen as a practical step to accelerate permitting, financing, and field development, while distributing operational risk between the two European majors. Nigeria is producing roughly 1.5 million barrels per day, well below its OPEC quota, putting pressure on Abuja to fast-track frontier assets like OPL 245.
Industry analysts caution that development will not be immediate. Deepwater projects of this scale typically require years of engineering, environmental approvals, and infrastructure investment. Optimistic timelines suggest first oil could still be a decade away — but the resolution of the standoff marks a decisive turning point for Nigeria’s upstream ambitions.
Source: businessday.ng | Reuters via thisdaylive.com