File: Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Energy, Olu Verheijen
Nigeria has recorded four Final Investment Decisions in gas projects in less than two years under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, while average daily gas production has risen from about seven billion cubic feet to eight bcf, the Special Adviser to the President on Energy, Mrs Olu Arowolo Verheijen, has said.
She attributed the progress to reforms designed to remove investment barriers and unlock Nigeria’s gas resources for industrialisation, electricity generation and economic growth.
Verheijen spoke on Wednesday at the Africa Interviews Sustainability Forum (AISF) 2026 in Lagos, which was themed ‘Energy Security and Africa’s Energy Transition: Defining the Role of Gas’.
“In Nigeria, in the last three years, under President Tinubu’s leadership, we have delivered tangible results. Average daily gas production has grown from about 7 BCF to 8, with indigenous producers playing an increasingly significant role in that supply story. We have also recorded four gas final investment decisions in less than two years, including the Ima project just a month ago”, she stated.
Nigeria holds more than 200 trillion cubic feet of proven gas reserves, but Verheijen said the priority was to convert these resources into economic value.
“A country can sit on enormous natural wealth and fail to turn it into energy to power industry – industries that create jobs and jobs that help us grow incomes,” she said.
“What turns resources into prosperity is investment, consistent investment that responds to predictable incentives and a stable environment”.
She said Tinubu had given his administration a clear mandate to address the barriers preventing investment from matching Nigeria’s potential.
Verheijen also highlighted measures to promote Liquefied Petroleum Gas for household cooking, including import duty waivers and zero-rated value-added tax on LPG and gas cylinders.
“A gas-rich nation cannot be comfortable while families remain stuck in the age of firewood”, she said.
She disclosed that more than N100bn in longstanding gas debts had been settled since January 2026 under the Presidential Power Sector Financial Reforms Programme, as part of efforts to strengthen the gas-to-power value chain.
At the forum, Africa Interviews Sustainability Forum Co-Founder, Sam Umukoro, said that natural resources alone would not determine Africa’s economic future.
“Our natural resources give us an advantage, but it is the investment we attract, the infrastructure we build and the value we create that will determine our economic future,” he said.
The forum also featured a high-level panel discussion bringing together energy-sector stakeholders to examine gas, energy security, investment and Africa’s energy transition.
General Manager, Strategy, Corporate Planning and Non-Operated Ventures at Waltersmith Petroman Oil Limited, Wandoo Ihyembe-Hassan, who represented the company’s Managing Director and CEO, Oladapo Filani, stressed the importance of practical action and collaboration in advancing Africa’s energy transition.
“Sustainability must be treated as a strategy, not an afterthought. Collaboration and government transparency are essential to shaping the role of gas in Africa’s energy transition. Beyond discussions, training must focus more on practical skills and actionable solutions that translate ideas into measurable results”, she said.
Executive Director and Chief Corporate Services and Sustainability Officer at Oando Plc, Ayotola Jagun, also emphasised collaboration, saying, “There is a strong need for collaboration as we transition from gas planning to gas delivery”.
East Asset Manager at Renaissance Africa Energy Company Ltd, Dr Trost Amos, who represented Managing Director and CEO Tony Attah, said: “Local expenses should not just be numbers, but show value. We need to treat the discussion of gas as a developmental emergency”.
Co-founder of Lean In Equity & Sustainability (LiNES), Lamé Verre, highlighted gas’s wider development role.
“Gas is not just about electricity and power; it’s also about healthcare, clean cooking, access to clean water, and other development priorities”.