Tinubu Hails $800m Ima Gas Project Investment Decision After Five Decades

President Bola Tinubu has welcomed the Final Investment Decision (FID) on the Ima Gas Project, describing the development as a major step toward unlocking Nigeria’s gas resources for industrialisation, job creation and economic growth. The announcement was made on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, in a statement by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.

The Ima Gas Project is being developed by Nigerian independent oil and gas company AMNI International in partnership with TotalEnergies. Located offshore in Oil Mining Leases 112 and 117, the gas resource was discovered in 1973 but remained undeveloped for more than five decades.

According to the presidency, the project is expected to produce about 300 million standard cubic feet of gas per day at peak. AMNI’s project announcement, however, puts the development’s estimated cost at approximately $1.108 billion and its planned plateau production at about 350 million standard cubic feet per day for at least eight years.

The gas is also expected to provide feedstock for Nigeria LNG’s expansion. AMNI said production from the project could supply around 30 percent of the feed-gas requirement for NLNG Train 7. Tinubu said the long-delayed development showed the importance of creating a predictable and competitive environment capable of attracting investment into Nigeria’s energy sector.

“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,” the President said, according to the statement. He added that the government would continue efforts to unlock additional gas resources to support industries, increase exports and create employment.

The Ima FID is the fourth major gas project to reach Final Investment Decision since Tinubu assumed office, following the Iseni, Ubeta and HI projects, according to the presidency.

The government said the project also reflects increasing participation by Nigerian companies and financial institutions in the country’s energy sector. The presidency stated that Nigerian financial institutions arranged about 77 percent of the project’s financing, while around 60 percent of the workforce is expected to come from host communities, including Bonny, Finima and Andoni in Rivers State.

The development comes amid broader government efforts to revive investment in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry. In August, Tinubu approved a new deep-offshore investment framework aimed at providing greater certainty for investors and unlocking additional capital for large offshore projects.

For Nigeria, the Ima project represents the movement of a gas discovery that had remained undeveloped since 1973 toward commercial development, with the potential to contribute to domestic gas supply, LNG production and wider economic activity.