Excellencies, Distinguished senators and honourable members of the house, honorable ministers, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, For twenty-five years, NOG Energy Week has been one of the rooms where Nigeria tells the truth about energy: what we have promised, what we have postponed, what we have delivered, and what we must now become. This year’s theme speaks of ambition, competitiveness and resilience. I want to add a fourth word: proof. Because in this season — when records are being tested, reforms are being debated, and the future of our economy is being contested — Nigeria does not need louder promises.

Distinguished members of the Nigerian-British Chamber of Commerce, Your Excellency the British Deputy High Commissioner, captains of industry, investors, regulators, development partners, ladies and gentlemen — good morning. We meet under a theme that captures both the challenge and the promise of our time: energy in Nigeria, from potential to reality. Nigeria has never lacked potential. We have oil. We have gas. We have sunlight, water, land, talent and scale. What we have lacked is conversion — the discipline to turn resources into results.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s reforms have made Nigeria the most attractive upstream destination for capital in Africa as stated in Wood Mackenzie Upstream Lens. Presidential executive orders unlocked IOC divestments, made deepwater competitive, and secured integrated investments that are reshaping the sector