ExxonMobil is signaling readiness to proceed with Final Investment Decisions (FIDs) on a series of major deep-water oil projects in Nigeria, collectively valued at approximately $10 billion. The company’s plans, which are being developed alongside its joint venture partners, are expected to significantly expand its oil production footprint in the country.
The first phase of the investment will focus on an infill drilling campaign at the existing Usan deep-water field, with a total estimated cost of over $1 billion. ExxonMobil has already committed 30 percent of the required funds and aims to declare investment readiness in the coming months.
The company has set an ambitious target to increase its total oil production in Nigeria from the current 100,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 250,000 bpd over the next five years.
Usan Infill Campaign: Unlocking Additional Resources
Mr. Jagir Baxi, Chairman and Managing Director of ExxonMobil’s Nigerian affiliate, disclosed the plans during an interview in Lagos following the 20th anniversary celebration of uninterrupted oil production at the Erha field, operated by Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria Limited (EEPNL).
Baxi explained that the infill drilling campaign at Usan is aimed at recovering additional resources revealed by seismic data. While the project falls within the original Usan reservoir, it will require new infrastructure, including wells, subsea connections, and utilization of the existing Usan Floating Production, Storage, and Offloading (FPSO) facility.
“Back to the comment I made about seismic results, it became clear that there is resource, it’s material, it’s valuable, it can be produced with relative speed, different from a brand-new greenfield FID,” Baxi said.
ExxonMobil has been coordinating with all relevant stakeholders, including NNPC, joint venture partners in OML 138, and regulators such as the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) to meet the requirements needed to take the FID.
“Within months of the campaign starting, we’ll be able to produce from this investment. The investment runs through almost all next year as a total campaign. We have already committed around 30 percent of that in early works, long-lead equipment, and foundational contracts. That’s about the time a typical large investment would reach FID readiness. We’ll cross that gate very soon,” he added.
Owowo: A Major Deep-Water Development
Central to ExxonMobil’s investment plans is the Owowo deep-water field, which holds between 500 million and one billion barrels of oil reserves. Full development of the field is estimated to require $7–8 billion in investment and involves a tie-back to the Usan FPSO facility.
ExxonMobil holds a 27 percent interest in Owowo as operator. Joint venture partners include Chevron Nigeria Limited (27 percent), TotalEnergies E&P Nigeria Limited (18 percent), Nexen Petroleum Deepwater Nigeria Limited (18 percent), and NNPC (10 percent).
Baxi described Owowo as “the tip of the spear,” noting that it will require 20–40 wells—a larger scale than existing tiebacks such as Erha and Bonga, which have 10–15 wells. While Erha and Bonga tiebacks are within a single kilometre of existing infrastructure, Owowo is spread over more than 30 kilometres.
“Resource size, you can characterize Owowo as at least 50 percent or more larger than either the Erha North tieback or the Bonga North tieback to Bonga. It’s a truly big field, but its geography is spread more than Erha or Bonga today are,” Baxi said.
He added that Owowo is at least twice the size of Bonga North, currently being developed by Shell Nigeria Petroleum Company Limited (SNEPCo) at an estimated $5 billion investment.
Unlocking Oil and Gas Growth
ExxonMobil’s strategy combines brownfield and greenfield projects. The Usan and Erha infill campaigns are expected to unlock an additional 60,000 bpd of oil, while Owowo’s development will deliver 100,000 bpd of oil and 100 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscf/d) of gas. In total, the combined investments could add 160,000 bpd and 100 mmscf/d of gas to Nigeria’s production.
Baxi highlighted the company’s long-term growth vision: “To your question if we can see a future of 250,000 or 200,000 barrels, yes, it is definitely a possibility as we put these investment pieces together. We are motivated to try and do more than that, actually.”
The Owowo project is also expected to facilitate a gas pipeline that can bring gas from both Owowo and Usan to shore, further supporting Nigeria’s energy infrastructure.
Government Incentives and Stakeholder Alignment
Baxi praised the Nigerian government for establishing an enabling fiscal regime that incentivizes new deep-water investments. He referred specifically to Presidential Executive Directives 40, 41, and 42, which support national content, efficient contracting, and fiscal incentives.
“These directives have been translated into project-specific strategies for Owowo. For example, national content directives translate to an Owowo-specific national content strategy; contracting and efficient cycle times translate to an Owowo contracting strategy; and the incentive structure translates to an Owowo incentive analysis,” Baxi said.
He emphasized that ExxonMobil will only declare FID when all partners and stakeholders are fully aligned. “We’re not interested in making an announcement that looks like we want to go. That’s not the ExxonMobil way. We want certainty, we’ll work for certainty, and we’ll commit to what we say we will do as operator,” he said.
Looking Ahead
The planned investments underscore ExxonMobil’s commitment to deepening its operations in Nigeria. By combining near-term brownfield development with large-scale greenfield projects, the company aims to strengthen oil and gas production, unlock significant reserves, and contribute to the country’s energy development goals.