Nigeria Energy

During the 1970s Nigeria had a prosperous, export-orientated mining industry. Before the discovery of oil, the West African nation had developed strong production operations for coal, tin and columbite. The discovery of hydrocarbons eclipsed these activities and relegated mining to an economic footnote. However, with the recent decline in the global price of oil and reductions in production...

As Africa’s largest oil producer, Nigeria’s energy sector accounts for 90% of exports and at least 50% of government revenues. The country is second only to Libya on the continent in the size of its reserves, and onshore fields have been productive for decades. Offshore deposits are a frontier that has been massively underexplored, and in recent years international oil companies have started...

The lack of power has been among the biggest obstacles to economic growth, and Nigeria is in the midst of a long and complex effort to increase electricity supply by more than fivefold by 2020, from the current level of about 3400 MW to 20,000 MW. The immediate result of this is a spike in demand for capital to rehabilitate existing capacity and add new supply, making foreign investment –...

Still Africa’s largest oil producer, with an industry that in past decades has fuelled the growth of what is now its largest economy, Nigeria has the biggest reserves on the continent. Local operators are expanding their share of production, while domestic services companies are boosting capacity to meet local content requirements. Yet the sector faces steep challenges, from policy uncertainty...