Vice-President Kashim Shettima has announced that Petrobras, Brazil’s state oil company, is seeking to re-enter Nigeria’s oil sector, specifically targeting frontier deepwater acreage.

In a statement released on Wednesday, Shettima praised the presence of high-ranking Brazilian government officials in Nigeria to discuss this significant proposal.

The discussions were part of an inter-ministerial review meeting held at the presidential villa in Abuja, which aimed to coordinate Nigeria’s preparations for the second session of the Brazil Strategic Dialogue Mechanism (SDM), scheduled for June.

“As the economic reforms of President Bola Tinubu’s administration take root, Petrobras, which had previously scaled back its operations in Nigeria at the Agbami Field, is now actively engaging with Nigerian authorities. This marks a broader effort to revitalize bilateral cooperation ahead of the 2025 Nigeria–Brazil Strategic Dialogue Mechanism,” the statement read.

Shettima emphasized the importance of the meeting, noting, “The presence of six ministers and the Solicitor-General of the Federation highlights the significance we attach to our relationship with Brazil.”

He acknowledged that Nigeria has yet to fully capitalize on the historical ties between the two nations, asserting, “It is better late than never. The upcoming SDM presents a unique opportunity to execute sector-specific Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) and unlock investment flows.”

Petrobras began its operations in Nigeria in 1998 but eventually divested its stakes years later to raise funds for domestic projects. In May 2017, the company decided to divest $21 billion worth of assets following a dramatic increase in its debt to $100 billion at that time.