Economy
Ingentia Energies Targets 30,000 bpd Crude Output by 2030
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigerian upstream petroleum operator, Ingentia Energies Limited, has unveiled an ambitious expansion plan to raise production to 30,000 barrels per day by 2030.
This came as the company met with the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) during a recent strategic engagement.
The NUPRC reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening indigenous participation in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry while insisting on strict regulatory compliance, corporate responsibility, and investment in human capital development.
Speaking with Mr Valentine Ugbeide, the chairman of Ingentia Energies Limited and his top management team at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja, Mrs Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, the agency’s chief executive, emphasised that indigenous operators remain critical to the future growth, sustainability, and survival of Nigeria’s upstream petroleum sector.
Mrs Eyesan said indigenous companies have a major role to play in expanding production, deepening local participation, and driving long-term industry resilience, stressing that even modest production contributions from multiple indigenous operators could significantly boost national output.
According to her, “For the indigenous players, this is a major space. Little drops matter, and when you have many operators contributing consistently, the cumulative impact becomes substantial for national production.”
She commended Ingentia Energies’ leadership for demonstrating seriousness and strategic direction, noting that strong execution capacity, visionary boards, and management commitment are essential for indigenous firms seeking to scale successfully in Nigeria’s competitive oil and gas landscape.
The NUPRC boss, however, warned that growth must be matched with institutional strength, regulatory discipline, and operational structures capable of sustaining long-term industry participation.
She stressed that many indigenous firms often prioritise immediate production and market survival at the expense of building robust internal systems, technical competence, and sustainability structures previously embedded by international oil companies.
“Human capital development is no longer optional. Indigenous companies must deliberately invest in the right capabilities, systems, and structures to remain competitive and sustainable,” she said.
Mrs Eyesan called for stronger collaboration among indigenous operators, regulators, and industry stakeholders to enrich the sector’s resource base and build a more resilient local industry.
She further urged operators to uphold good corporate citizenship by meeting statutory obligations, including the payment of royalties, gas penalties, and other regulatory debts.
On his part, Mr Ugbeide, Ingentia Energies Chairman, in his response, unveiled an ambitious expansion plan to raise production to 30,000 barrels per day by 2030, as the company secured a facility from a Nigerian bank to deepen drilling, end gas flaring, and strengthen its position as a model for local participation in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
Mr Ugbeide said Ingentia’s journey from a challenging indigenous acquisition to a growing production company demonstrates that Nigerian firms can successfully operate strategic upstream assets when backed by the right regulatory support, technical competence, and collaborative governance structure.
Describing the company’s Egbolom field development as a template for indigenous operators, he said Ingentia had overcome formidable structural and financial barriers that were initially designed to frustrate local operators.
“Egbolom has become a role model that mirrors what indigenous companies can achieve despite obstacles. Our success should serve as a blueprint for other local firms,” he said.
He revealed that after demonstrating operational discipline and strong compliance performance, local financial institutions gained confidence in Ingentia’s business model, leading to the recent debt financing.
“We got debt funding from a local bank last week to continue our activities. They saw our performance and began pursuing us because of what we have achieved,” he said.
He added that Ingentia has maintained strong regulatory compliance, including consistent royalty payments and zero defaults on gas flare penalties, while currently flaring between 1.8 million and 3 million standard cubic feet of gas daily.
However, he announced that this would end before year-end as the company finalizes infrastructure with a Chinese technical partner to commercialise its gas resources and supply gas to on-site facilities.
“Before the end of this year, that gas will be fully utilised, and we will stop flaring completely,” he stated.
Mr Ugbeide also highlighted Ingentia’s significant infrastructure investments, including the Ogunokun operational base with jetty and mooring systems, alongside additional investments in drilling sites, accommodation, and logistics support structures.
From an initial workforce of just two staff members, he said the company has grown to over 100 direct and indirect employees, with plans for more aggressive recruitment as production scales from current levels toward 10,000 barrels per day and beyond.
He disclosed that Ingentia plans to drill a minimum of two wells annually, supported by fresh seismic campaigns targeting deeper reservoir opportunities.
“Our target is clear — by 2030, we want to be in the neighbourhood of 30,000 barrels per day,” he said.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The Debt Management Office (DMO) on Monday allotted bonds worth N929.3 billion to investors from the N1.7 trillion bids it received from subscribers.
The exercise, which took place on Monday, July 20, 2026, was oversubscribed by market participants, reflecting the confidence investors have in the government’s ability to redeem the debt instrument on maturity.
On offer for sale for the July auction was N1.2 trillion worth of the FGN bonds, but the DMO allotted below this, despite receiving bids above the offer.
The papers were offered in 10-year, 15-year, and 20-year tenors, at N400 billion each.
For the decade-old note, investors staked N444.47 billion, but the debt office sold N245.73 billion at an 18.34 per cent coupon rate. For the one and a half-decade-old paper, bids valued at N518.00 billion were received by the DMO, with a non-competitive bid of N50.00 billion, with N302.13 billion allotted to investors at 18.40 per cent, and for the two-decade paper, the DMO got competitive bids of N665.19 billion and N381.46 billion was sold to bondholders at 18.35 per cent.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Yemi Cardoso, disclosed that Nigeria’s external reserves had risen to $52.5 billion, enough to finance about nine months of imports.
He disclosed this on Tuesday at the end of the 306th meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) held in Abuja, where the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) retained the benchmark interest rate at 26.50 per cent as well as the standing facilities corridor at +50/-450 basis points around the MPR.
Similarly, the Cash Reserve Requirement (CRR) was maintained at 45 per cent for Deposit Money Banks, 16 per cent for Merchant Banks, and 75 per cent for non-Treasury Single Account (TSA) public sector deposits.
Speaking on FX developments, the central banker said at the $52 billion level, the country’s external reserves were significantly above the internationally recommended threshold of three months of import cover.
On the Naira exchange rate, Mr Cardoso said the foreign exchange market had deepened and was now operating on a transparent willing-buyer, willing-seller basis.
He said the apex bank remained committed to maintaining a liquid and functional foreign exchange market, adding that daily market turnover sometimes exceeded $1 billion.
According to him, the long-term stability of the naira would depend on key economic fundamentals, including increased oil exports, foreign direct investment, and improved domestic productivity to reduce dependence on imports.
He also added that the MPC welcomed the federal government’s renewed commitment to stronger policy coordination, particularly collaboration between fiscal and monetary authorities, which he said had helped reduce the impact of the Middle East crisis on the Nigerian economy.
Mr Cardoso said members of the committee also commended efforts to improve crude oil production and urged relevant agencies to intensify reforms in other sectors, including solid minerals, to boost government revenue.
On the regulatory forbearance granted to banks during the COVID-19 period, he reiterated that this had been discontinued because it had served its purpose.
According to him, the policy had “outlived its time” and was no longer necessary in assessing the health of the banking sector.
“Forbearance, we felt, had outlived its time. Many of you will recall this is something that came as a result of COVID. And now we are in 2026; we did not see the reason why that should continue to form part of the analysis of the banking system,” he said.
Mr Cardoso explained that banks had begun recalibrating their portfolios following the end of the policy, leading to a temporary reduction in outstanding risk assets.
He, however, assured that the development was part of a transition towards a stronger and more sustainable credit environment.
“It reflects a transition to a more sustainable and better quality credit environment, which is what we all want. We don’t want unanticipated shocks that come in a boom-and-bust fashion,” he said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange extended its recent positive run by 1.17 per cent on Tuesday, July 21, triggered by appreciation seen in four bellwethers.
Leading the pack was FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc, which added N12.00 to its value to close at N153.15 per share compared with the previous day’s N141.15 per share. NASD Plc appreciated by N1.90 to N36.00 per unit from N34.10 per unit, Food Concepts Plc improved by 23 Kobo to N2.48 per share from N2.25 per share, and Afriland Properties Plc grew by a marginal 1 Kobo to N15.01 per unit from N15.00 per unit.
As a result, the market capitalisation of the bourse increased by N30.40 billion to N2.637 trillion from Monday’s N2.606 trillion, and the NASD Security Index (NSI) gained 50.70 points to finish at 4,393.97 points, in contrast to the 4,343.27 points it ended a day earlier.
The unlisted securities exchange recorded a price loser yesterday, and it was Geo-Fluids Plc, which shed 1 Kobo to settle at N2.30 per share versus N2.31 per share.
During the trading day, the volume of securities traded by market participants on Tuesday dropped 99.4 per cent to 322,147 units from the previous day’s 52.6 million units, the value of securities dipped by 89.8 per cent to N19.4 million from the preceding session’s N191.2 million, and the number of deals contracted by 3.6 per cent to 27 deals from 28 deals.
Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc ended the day as the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units traded for N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units transacted for N6.5 billion, and Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc with 75.4 million units exchanged for N5.3 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the day as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units valued at N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units sold for N415.7 million.
