Tinubu Set to Commission Nigeria’s First Indigenous Crude Export Terminal in 54 Years

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is scheduled to commission the $400 million Otakikpo Onshore Crude Oil Export Terminal in Rivers State on October 8, 2025, marking a monumental milestone as the first new crude export facility built in Nigeria in over five decades. The last such facility, the Forcados Terminal, was commissioned in 1971.

The facility, located in Ikuru town, Andoni Local Government Area, is a wholly indigenous venture developed by Green Energy International Limited (GEIL), the operator of the Otakikpo field. The commissioning aligns directly with the Tinubu administration’s strategic objective to significantly boost the nation’s crude oil production and overcome persistent evacuation bottlenecks that have long hampered the sector.

According to a statement from GEIL, the new terminal is a “game-changing national infrastructure” designed to provide a much-needed lifeline to over 40 stranded oil fields in the region. By offering a reliable and cost-efficient evacuation outlet, the terminal is poised to unlock millions of barrels of crude oil that were previously trapped, thereby contributing substantially to the economy.

The new terminal boasts an initial storage capacity of 750,000 barrels, which is expandable to three million barrels, and features a loading capacity of 360,000 barrels per day. This infrastructure is also expected to help lower the overall production cost for indigenous producers, a key factor in improving the operational landscape for local players.

The official inauguration is set to attract a high-profile delegation, including Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara, the Minister of State for Petroleum (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, and key stakeholders from across the oil and gas industry, underscoring the federal government’s renewed efforts to restore investor confidence and drive sector growth.