Nigeria’s Petroleum Minister Lokpobiri offers Clarity on Issues around OPL 245

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, has offered clarity on Oil Prospecting Licence (OPL) 245.

A key oil block, OPL 245, has been sub- ject to various litigations across different jurisdictions.

It is estimated that the block holds over nine billion barrels of crude oil reserves, representing about a quar- ter of the nation’s total proven oil reserves of 37 billion barrels.

The main issue revolves around the transfer of rights from Malabu Oil & Gas Limited to Shell/Eni.

In July 2022, the Prosecutor-General’s Office dropped its appeal against Eni, the parent company of the Nigeri- an Agip Oil Company (NAOC), before the Second Section of the Court of Appeal of Milan, Italy, over the trans- action of the oil block.

What this means is that the case has been waived, which the court has acknowledged, ending the criminal liti- gation against Eni over OPL 245 deal.

The Court of Milan, had in March 2021, fully acquitted all charges against Eni, its Chief Executive Officer, Claudio Descalzi and the top managers of the company over the transaction of OPL 245.

Eni and Shell have been on trial for allegedly paying $1.1 billion through the back door to buy OPL 245 off- shore oilfield in 2011, one of the oil in- dustry’s biggest graft cases, but both companies have denied any wrong- doing.

The acquittal is a big blow to Nigeria as Shell Plc and Eni had in May 2020, won dismissal of a $1 billion UK law- suit brought against them by the country over allegations they knew about bribes in the oil deal.

A London judge ruled that England has no jurisdiction to try the case as it involves the same essential facts as a separate Italian (Milan) criminal case.

But in the light of recent discussions and misconceptions surrounding the resolution of issues around the oil block, Lokpobiri has offered clarity and dispel any misinformation that may have arisen.

He noted that in the course of the legal proceedings, there was no evi- dence indicating any criminal liability on the part of the Federal Govern- ment or any involved parties, adding that all legal battles have concluded with outcomes affirming the absence of criminal wrongdoing.

“The matter concerning OML 245, a significant oil block within our nation’s territory, has been subject to various litigations and discussions across different jurisdictions. It is essential to understand the intricacies of the agreements and the efforts invested in resolving the disputes surrounding this block.

“The core issue revolves around the agreement between the Federal Government, Shell and ENI, wherein the Federal Government facilitated the transfer of rights from Malabu to Shell/ENI in exchange for consid- eration. This process was conducted transparently and in accordance with established legal frameworks.

“Throughout the legal proceedings, there has been no evidence indicating any criminal liability on the part of the Federal Government or any involved parties. All legal battles across multi- ple courts have concluded with out- comes affirming the absence of crimi- nal wrongdoing,” Lokpobiri said via his X handle in January.

According to him, President Bola Tinubu, has directed efforts towards resolving the lingering issues around OPL 245.

The Minister informed that meetings and discussions have been convened with stakeholders from various coun- tries, including the Netherlands, the UK and Milan, Italy, to explore ave- nues for an amicable resolution of the dispute.

He maintained that Nigeria with just a 5 percent reserve investment ratio in the oil sector – the lowest globally in the last five years, needs to boost its investment in the sector to avert an imminent economic crisis.

Lokpobiri posited that resolving all issues around OPL 245 and other oil wells, will attract investment running into billions of dollars.

He said: “On the complexity surround- ing OML 245, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has demonstrated astute lead- ership by directing efforts towards re- solving the lingering issues. Meetings and discussions have been convened with stakeholders from various coun- tries, including the Netherlands, the UK and Milan, to explore avenues for an amicable resolution.

“With just a 5 percent reserve invest- ment ratio in our oil sector, which is the lowest globally in the last five years, there is an urgent need to boost our investment in the sector to avert an imminent economic crisis.

“If we resolve all issues around OML 245 and other oil wells, with our investment friendliness, it will attract investment running into billions of dollars, potentially changing the nar- rative significantly.

“Let me stress that President Bola Ahmed interest lies remains the transformation of our vast natural re- sources into prosperity for the nation.

“We have continued to leverage the positive impact of the PIA and the mutually-beneficial policies of the President  Bola  Ahmed-led  Federal Government to attract prospective investors, but we all must be patriotic in supporting these pursuits.

“We must remainpatriotic in our statements and continue to build faith in the #RenewedHope administration because the President has good intentions for the nation and has support- ed the resolution of all issues around OML 245.”