President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will next week commission the newly completed Otakikpo Onshore Crude Oil Export Terminal in Rivers.

The terminal, which is the first indigenous facility of its kind established by Green Energy International Limited (GEIL), operator of the Otakikpo Field (PML 11) with an operational base in Ikuru Town, Andoni Local Government Area, is a milestone achievement for the country’s energy sector. The last terminal of this kind, the Forcados Terminal, was commissioned in 1971.

According to a statement issued by GEIL’s Executive Director of Legal and Corporate Services, Olusegun Ilori, the completion of the Otakikpo Terminal aligns with President Tinubu’s agenda to ramp up national crude oil production. Oil operators have long identified evacuation constraints as a critical obstacle to meeting the Federal Government’s target of producing three million barrels per day.

“The Otakikpo terminal is expected to provide a lifeline to over 40 stranded oil fields that now have a ready evacuation outlet, unlocking millions of barrels of crude that would otherwise remain trapped,” Ilori said.

The new terminal, which has an initial storage capacity of 750,000 barrels, expandable to three million barrels, and a loading capacity of 360,000 barrels per day, is also expected to contribute to lowering production costs across the sector.

The commissioning ceremony is expected to attract prominent figures, including the Governor of Rivers State, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, top federal government officials, and leading industry stakeholders. The event will be led by the Minister of State for Petroleum (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri.

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Green Energy, Professor Anthony Adegbulugbe, described the project as a transformative development in Nigeria’s oil and gas landscape.

“What we have achieved here is not just a storage solution, but a game-changing national infrastructure that has opened a new pathway for about 40 stranded oil fields to finally contribute to the economy,” Adegbulugbe said.

With the Otakikpo Terminal, Nigeria not only strengthens its crude oil export infrastructure but also signals renewed momentum in indigenous participation and investment in the oil industry.