By Chioma Obinagwam
Nigeria’s oil and gas free zones have pulled in a staggering $24 billion in investments, creating hundreds of thousands of jobs and turning the country into a growing hub for energy-related manufacturing and exports.
Confiance News gathered from a statement issued by the Head, Corporate Communications Oil and Gas Free Zones Authority (OGFZA), Golda Opuine Ukomadu, on Friday.
Speaking at a packed town hall with the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and licensees at the Onne Oil and Gas Free Zone in Rivers State, OGFZA Managing Director Bamanga Usman Jada revealed the milestone and issued a strong appeal: give free zone operators a minimum 10-year exemption from the new tax reforms to avoid derailing long-term investments.
“Many of our licensees—some of the biggest names in global energy—are making 10-, 15-, even 25-year plans based on the existing incentives,” Jada told the audience. “Abrupt changes risk sending the wrong signal to investors at the exact moment Nigeria is finally gaining momentum.”
The call echoes a similar plea made last week by the Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA) and won immediate, unanimous backing from stakeholders at the event.
Jada pointed to global success stories—Dubai’s Jebel Ali Free Zone and Oman’s Sohar Free Zone—as proof that long-term tax certainty is the rocket fuel behind transformative investment. Nigeria, he said, is now seeing the same trajectory: over 200 enterprises operating in OGFZA-regulated zones, 496.5 million metric tons of exports, and markets opened in Brazil, the United States, France, India, the UK, South Korea, and beyond.
“These numbers are not just statistics—they are the direct result of policy consistency under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda,” Jada declared, praising the President’s “visionary leadership” and the support of Industry, Trade and Investment Minister Dr. Jumoke Oduwole and Minister of State Senator John Enoh.
OGFZA itself has been repeatedly recognized for making business easier, winning the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) “Best Federal Agency on Ease of Doing Business” award four times (2018, 2019, 2022, and 2024) and being named the world’s best specialized free zone by the Financial Times’ fDi Magazine in 2018.
FIRS Executive Chairman Dr. Zacch Adedeji, represented by Special Adviser Dr. Cletus Adie, defended the tax reforms as necessary modernization but stressed they are not aimed at taxing profits inside the zones. Instead, the focus is on transparency, proper reporting, and ending what he called “recalcitrant behaviour” by some operators.
Adedeji warned that tax clearance certificates will now be mandatory for license renewals, citing powers under the Nigerian Tax Administration Act.
Despite the tougher tone from FIRS, the room remained united: every stakeholder present reiterated the demand for a decade-long transition period to protect existing investments and keep the momentum going.
As one licensee put it during the lively Q&A session: “We came to Nigeria because of the incentives. Take them away overnight, and we’ll have to rethink everything.”
With $24 billion already on the table and more in the pipeline, the stakes for Nigeria’s free zones—and the jobs and forex they deliver—have never been higher.
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- Nigerian economic reforms
- OGFZA secures $24 billion investments in Nigeria
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- Surge in exports under Renewed Hope Agenda Nigeria
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