Nigeria to Boost E&P Spending

Nigeria plans to spend between US$15bn to US$20bn annually on oil exploration and production, Junior Oil Minister Odein Ajumogobia has announced.

Talking to Dow Jones reporters, the minister spoke of an "aggressive production capacity expansion plan" into investments in the Gulf of Guinea, which comprises Angola, Cameroon, Gabon, Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Sao Tome and Principe.

The minister said the state-run oil company, NNPC, was being restructured for better performance to address funding challenges that have threatened sector growth.

Nigeria is Africa's biggest oil producer, with current crude oil reserves at about 35 billion barrels.

By staff writer