President Bola Tinubu has welcomed the Final Investment Decision (FID) by AMNI International Petroleum Development Company Limited and TotalEnergies EP Nigeria Limited on the $1.108 billion Ima Gas Project, which is expected to boost gas supply to Nigeria LNG’s Train 7 expansion.
The FID, announced on Wednesday, marks a major step towards developing the Ima gas field, located offshore in Oil Mining Leases (OMLs) 112 and 117. The project has independently confirmed gross reserves of about 1.28 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of non-associated gas.
According to the project partners, the development is designed to produce about 350 million standard cubic feet of gas per day at plateau for a minimum of eight years, with first gas targeted for October 2028. Gas from the project is expected to provide about 30 per cent of the feed gas required for Nigeria LNG’s Train 7.
The Ima gas field, discovered in 1973, will be developed through a single offshore platform connected by a 22-kilometre pipeline to Nigeria LNG.
The development will now move into the engineering, procurement and construction phase following the completion of Front-End Engineering Design and key project agreements.
Tinubu said the investment demonstrated the potential of Nigeria’s gas resources to support industrialisation, exports, job creation and economic growth.
He said the government would continue to create a competitive and predictable environment capable of attracting long-term investment into the country’s energy sector.
TotalEnergies, which will operate the project with a 40 per cent interest, said the Ima development would contribute to the expansion of Nigeria LNG’s Train 7, which is expected to raise the plant’s liquefaction capacity from 22 million tonnes per annum to 30 million tonnes per annum. AMNI holds the remaining 60 per cent interest.
The project is also expected to have significant Nigerian content, with TotalEnergies stating that key contractors will be local companies and about 60 per cent of the workforce during development is expected to come from host communities.
