By Sam Otuonye

The President of the Nigerian-Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Ishmael Balogun, has announced that Nigeria and Indonesia were exploring direct government-to-government oil and gas partnerships that could attract billions of dollars in investment, create jobs and facilitate technology transfer.

Balogun disclosed the development on Saturday, 31 October, 2026, after the Indonesian 41st Trade Expo, where hundreds of Nigerian delegates were present.

Highlighting efforts to deepen bilateral trade and investment, Balogun said Indonesia currently buys about $3bn worth of Nigerian crude oil annually, adding that shifting from third-party transactions to direct government-to-government arrangements could unlock investment opportunities in oil exploration and other sectors.

“Indonesia has been buying crude from Nigeria, but they are buying it from a third-party kind of relationship. But this time around, we’re looking at a relationship where they can do a G2G, which opens up a lot of opportunities in exploration,” he said.

According to Balogun, direct investment in exploration would generate wider economic benefits for Nigeria beyond the revenue derived from conventional trade.

“If you have an idea of the amount of money that is invested to explore for oil, that means jobs will be created for the common man in Nigeria. There will be knowledge transfer; there will be income that will be earned,” he added.

He described the proposed partnership as a mutually beneficial arrangement capable of attracting Foreign Direct Investment and strengthening economic relations between the two countries.

“Trading is good. Trading is what trading is. You buy, you go. But when it comes to exploration, life changes. And the level of investment we’re talking about is in billions of dollars that affect literally every single body in Nigeria that’s involved,” Balogun said.

He disclosed that more than 25 Indonesian government representatives had visited Nigeria less than a month before the interview to explore opportunities for closer cooperation in the energy sector.

The delegation included representatives of Indonesian state-owned energy company Pertamina, its renewable energy and exploration divisions, as well as the country’s Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs.