President Bola Tinubu will inaugurate the $400 million Otakikpo Onshore Crude Oil Export Terminal in Rivers State on October 8, marking Nigeria’s first new crude export facility in more than five decades.

Developed by Green Energy International Limited (GEIL), operators of the Otakikpo field in OML 11, Ikuru Town, Andoni Local Government Area, the terminal is the first wholly indigenous onshore crude export hub in the country. The last comparable facility, the Forcados Terminal, was commissioned in 1971.

The commissioning is expected to draw senior government officials, including Minister of State for Petroleum (Oil) Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara, and leading players in the oil and gas industry.

In a statement on Thursday, GEIL’s Executive Director of Legal and Corporate Services, Olusegun Ilori, said the project underscores Tinubu’s push to ramp up crude production and resolve Nigeria’s long-standing crude evacuation bottlenecks.

“This project is a strategic infrastructure that supports the administration’s commitment to raising output while reducing costs,” Ilori said.

By offering a dependable evacuation outlet, the Otakikpo terminal could unlock millions of barrels from over 40 stranded oil fields, positioning it as a strategic asset for Nigeria’s crude supply chain.

The terminal will start with a storage capacity of 750,000 barrels, with room to expand to three million barrels, and a loading capacity of 360,000 barrels per day.

It is also expected to lower production costs for indigenous operators.

GEIL’s Chairman and Chief Executive, Professor Anthony Adegbulugbe, described the project as a “transformational national infrastructure.”

“What we have achieved here is not just a storage solution, but a pathway for about 40 stranded oil fields to finally contribute to the economy,” Adegbulugbe said.