The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has reaffirmed its support for Shell Nigeria’s operations as the Federal Government seeks to unlock about $50 billion in deep offshore investments, with the estimated $10 billion Bonga South West project expected to play a major role.
The NUPRC Chief Executive, Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, gave the assurance during a meeting with Shell Nigeria’s newly appointed Executive Vice President and Country Chair, Elohor Aiboni, at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja.
The discussions focused on Shell’s ongoing projects and efforts by the Federal Government to attract fresh investment into Nigeria’s deep offshore oil sector. Eyesan said the commission remained committed to supporting industry operators as Nigeria targets crude oil production of three million barrels per day by 2030.
Aiboni assumed her new position on August 1, 2026, becoming the first woman to hold the combined role of Executive Vice President and Country Chair of Shell Nigeria. She succeeded Marno de Jong, who retired after more than six years leading the company’s Nigerian operations.
Aiboni has spent over 24 years with Shell, working across its Nigerian onshore and offshore businesses as well as international assignments in Kazakhstan and Brunei. She previously became the first female Managing Director of Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited in 2021.
Meanwhile, the Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA Resource Centre) has urged NUPRC to publicly disclose how it plans to address outstanding environmental and decommissioning liabilities linked to a proposed transaction involving TotalEnergies EP Nigeria Limited.
HEDA called on the commission to carefully assess the environmental and financial implications before approving TotalEnergies’ proposed sale of its 10 per cent non-operated stake in oil licences operated by the Renaissance Africa Energy Joint Venture.
The organisation said the review was necessary because of longstanding environmental pollution associated with assets previously operated by the Shell Petroleum Development Company joint venture. It urged authorities to ensure that responsibility for remediation was not transferred to an entity without the capacity to meet the obligations.