We advised the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) on structuring and securing external financing to resolve legacy debt obligations and long-standing cash-flow challenges impacting its upstream joint ventures. As Africa’s largest oil producer and a core member of OPEC, Nigeria’s economic stability is deeply intertwined with NNPC’s operational strength. Following the collapse in global oil prices, NNPC faced growing capital constraints, delayed partner payments, and production risks across key assets operated with international majors.

 

Our mandate was to restore financial stability, rebuild institutional credibility, and ensure the continuity of vital oil and gas projects that underpin Nigeria’s economic recovery. By developing an innovative funding structure and mobilizing international partners, we helped NNPC unlock the liquidity required to sustain production and strengthen its role as the anchor of the national energy ecosystem.

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Client: Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC)
Location: Federal Republic of Nigeria
Role: Relationship Management | Capital Markets Structuring
Industry: Oil & Gas (Commodities Finance)

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Our Approach and Work

• Strategic assessment and partnership formation – We began by assessing NNPC’s capital position, joint-venture obligations, and historical funding bottlenecks, identifying a clear pathway to stabilize operations without diluting state control.

• Consortium structuring – Working in partnership with a London-based energy advisory firm, we established a financing consortium anchored by BP Trading and private investors from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). The structure was modeled on the successful NNPC / Chevron Accelerated Upstream Financing Programme, creating a tested framework for replication.

• Capital raising and deployment – We structured and secured USD 1.25 billion in combined equity and debt funding, allocated toward NNPC’s ENI-operated JV blocks. These funds provided critical liquidity to fund new wells, sustain ongoing development, and clear outstanding obligations.

• Stakeholder coordination – Our team facilitated alignment between NNPC, ENI, and participating financial institutions, defining governance, repayment, and risk-sharing protocols that enhanced lender confidence and regulatory compliance.

• Market positioning and communication – We advised NNPC on how to leverage the transaction as a demonstration of its reform agenda, using it to rebuild credibility in global capital markets and position itself as a reliable counterpart for institutional investors and sovereign partners.

 

Objectives

Objective I - Design a financing structure that resolves JV capital shortfalls while maintaining NNPC’s strategic autonomy and operational control.

Objective II - Mobilize international trading and investment partners to replicate the Chevron accelerated-financing model for ENI-operated blocks.

Objective III - Restore liquidity, improve fiscal discipline, and enhance long-term access to global capital markets.

 

Outcome and Business Impact

• Secured USD 1.25 billion in capital commitments, restoring liquidity and enabling NNPC to fund new wells and sustain operations across ENI-operated JV blocks.

• Strengthened fiscal discipline and creditworthiness, reducing payment delays and enhancing transparency within joint-venture structures.

• Created a replicable financing framework modeled on the Chevron accelerated programme, providing a blueprint for future upstream capital mobilization.

• Reinforced investor and lender confidence, positioning NNPC as a credible counterpart for global financial institutions and trading partners.

• Enabled continued oil and gas production, safeguarding Nigeria’s revenue base and stabilizing national energy output.

• Advanced institutional reform within NNPC, establishing stronger governance, repayment mechanisms, and cross-border coordination protocols.

• Elevated Nigeria’s standing in global energy markets, signaling a new era of strategic independence and professionalized capital management.

 

The success of this transaction lay not in reinventing NNPC’s financing model, but in extending and strengthening what had already worked. Building on the structure pioneered by Standard Chartered’s accelerated upstream programme, we introduced a broader framework that diversified NNPC’s funding sources beyond traditional lenders.

 

The transaction gave the corporation new optionality, access to competitive financing, reduced concentration risk, and greater flexibility in managing its development pipeline. In doing so, we helped NNPC evolve from reliance on conventional debt markets toward a more strategic, partnership-driven model of energy finance, one better suited to the scale and ambition of Nigeria’s future.

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