• Nigeria has commissioned its first locally built onshore crude-export terminal in over 50 years, the Otakikpo facility, with an initial capacity of 360,000 barrels per day.

• Green Energy International (GEIL) committed an initial $400 million, with plans to expand storage capacity from 750,000 to 3 million barrels, to serve marginal producers and reduce logistics costs by up to 40 %.

• The terminal currently handles only 10,000–15,000 barrels per day (~5 % utilization), raising questions about demand and field connectivity.

Nigeria, Africa’s largest crude producer, has taken a major step to strengthen its midstream infrastructure by commissioning its first locally built crude export terminal in more than half a century.

On 8 October in Ikuru Town, Rivers State, President Bola Tinubu inaugurated the Otakikpo onshore export terminal, which currently offers a storage capacity of 750,000 barrels and an export pumping capacity of 360,000 barrels per day. GEIL, the operator, plans to expand storage to 3 million barrels in future phases.

GEIL (Green Energy International Ltd.), in partnership with Lekoil Nigeria Ltd., dispatched its maiden shipment of about 100,000 barrels of light crude in June aboard a tanker chartered by Shell. The terminal connects to a 23-km pipeline and a single point mooring (SPM), ending the firm’s reliance on costly barge evacuation via floating systems.

Multi-user hub for marginal producers

Otakikpo is positioned as a multi-user hub targeting smaller producers in OML 11, 17 and 24—fields such as Ubima (All Grace Energy), Oza (Millennium Oil & Gas / Decklar Resources), and Asaramatoru (Prime E&P)—and for previously dormant fields in Ogoniland.

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) estimates that more than 40 fields previously locked out may now gain export access, unlocking up to 200,000 barrels per day in potential. Historically, such volumes depended on pipelines like the Trans-Niger (450,000 b/d) or Nembe Creek Trunk Line (150,000 b/d), often disrupted by leaks or vandalism.

Prior to Otakikpo, GEIL paid up to $120,000 per day to evacuate crude by barge to the Ima floating storage and offloading unit (FSO). The new terminal now replaces that system and modularly integrates logistics to reduce dependency and wastage.

Sovereignty, cost reduction, and investment

Heineken Lokpobiri, Nigeria’s State Minister for Petroleum, called the project “emblematic of indigenous capital participation.” The NUPRC projects the combined logistical efficiencies could cut marginal-field operators’ per-barrel cost by up to 40 %.

GEIL declared an initial capital injection of $400 million, with a full development budget potentially reaching $1.3 billion. The regulator states that some pipelines previously lost “as much as 60 % of injected crude” to leaks or theft (a 2022 estimate).

For fields like Oza or Asaramatoru, where transport costs rendered output marginally unviable, the terminal may shift the economics toward profitability. But success hinges on ramping field connectivity.

Utilization challenges and growth strategy

To date, only 10,000–15,000 barrels per day transit via Otakikpo—about 5% of its rated throughput—reflecting early underutilization. GEIL CEO Anthony Adegbulugbe emphasized that the facility is modular and can scale further within nine months if demand increases.

The model’s risk lies not in saturation but prolonged underuse, which could strain economic viability. If volumes grow, the operator may add storage tanks or a second mooring point to maintain open access for all producers.

President Tinubu has called for replicating this “open private infrastructure” model elsewhere in the Niger Delta. He sees Otakikpo as a path to reigniting long-constrained local production.

This article was initially published in French by Abdel-Latif Boureima

Adapted in English by Ange Jason Quenum