Elumelu Calls for Increased Oil Production to Fund Nigeria’s Diversification
By Patience Ikpeme
Tony Elumelu, founder of Heirs Energies, has urged Nigeria to significantly ramp up its oil production to generate the necessary revenue for economic diversification.
Speaking at the Heirs Energies Leadership Forum in Abuja, Elumelu emphasized the critical need for massive investment in the oil and gas sector to power the nation’s industries and ensure energy security.
“We cannot industrialise Africa, Nigeria, without improving access to energy and electricity in particular,” Elumelu asserted. “Heirs Energies was founded because energy investment is critical—it is what we need. We acquired OML 17 from Shell about four or five years ago. Today, we produce over 53,000 barrels of oil daily, and we are one of the leading indigenous oil and gas producers in Nigeria.”
Elumelu, who also serves as the group chairman of Heirs Holdings, noted that under the previous administration, Nigeria’s oil output plummeted to less than 1 million barrels per day (bpd). He expressed satisfaction with the current production levels, stating, “We are happy that under the current Tinubu administration, in general, we produce 1.8 million barrels of oil a day. But we are not satisfied with that figure. We want to take it to over 2 million. We know that we need oil money to diversify Nigeria away from oil. And we need to have the money to help develop our country.”
However, the entrepreneur acknowledged the persistent challenges facing the power sector, particularly the gas supply constraints that limit electricity generation. “Transcorp is the leading power-generating company in Nigeria with an installed capacity of 2,000 megawatts, but we are constrained by gas,” he explained. “Our goal is to increase gas production in Nigeria as we increase oil production. Gas will help industries to produce and enable power companies like Transcorp to generate more electricity.”
Elumelu revealed that Heirs Energies is pursuing an ambitious expansion plan to boost its oil output capacity to 100,000 bpd in the coming years. “What is more important is to have that raw material, which I’m happy that we have today,” he said. “Even though 53,000 barrels is not enough, we want to take it to 100,000 barrels. That’s why we are meeting here for three days, strategizing how we can achieve this. And with this conversation, the policymakers and industry leaders are discussing how we can coalesce and cooperate, and collaborate, which we need in this sector. We think we can do more. And yes, ultimately we will do so.”
He expressed optimism that Heirs can achieve this target, citing the incentives provided by President Bola Tinubu’s administration and the executive orders he has signed. He also noted the significant positive changes that have taken place in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector over the past 12 months.
Earlier, Osa Igiehon, CEO of Heirs Energies, highlighted the positive shifts occurring in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry. He pointed to the country’s turnaround from declining production to growth, citing the 1.7 million bpd output in January 2025.
He also acknowledged the increasing role of indigenous companies in Nigeria’s oil production, stating, “The second shift we are seeing is that with the completion of the major divestments that have just come through, midwifed by the CCE, we are now looking at a situation where over 50 per cent, possibly 60 per cent of Nigeria’s oil production is now operated by indigenous companies, and for a lot of people, there’s trepidation that can we deliver?. There’s also optimism that we can deliver.”
Igiehon reiterated Heirs Energies’ commitment to growth, aligning it with Nigeria’s own drive for accelerated development. “Heirs Energies has been one of those companies that have stood strongly for growth as demonstrated by what we have achieved. Just like Nigeria is trying to accelerate its growth, we also have our motto for this leadership forum being ‘Growth Accelerated’,” he said.
He stressed the importance of bringing industry stakeholders together to discuss growth strategies, particularly now that indigenous companies control a larger share of production. “We have to power it. We have to own the challenge and we have to deliver to the Nigerian people,” Igiehon concluded.
