French energy company TotalEnergies has transferred its 10 per cent participating interest in Nigeria’s Renaissance Joint Venture to Vaaris in a deal valued at $800m, maintaining its full economic rights to three gas-producing licences that contribute about 50 per cent of NLNG’s gas supply.
TotalEnergies announced the completion of the sale on Tuesday, confirming that its subsidiary, TotalEnergies EP Nigeria, had successfully concluded the transaction.
The transaction transfers TotalEnergies’ participating interest in the Renaissance JV licences to Vaaris, marking a further adjustment of the French company’s upstream oil portfolio in Nigeria.
However, the divestment does not end TotalEnergies’ economic exposure to the joint venture’s gas assets, as the company will retain its full economic interest in Oil Mining Leases (OMLs) 23, 28 and 77.
The three gas-producing licences are strategically important to Nigeria’s liquefied natural gas industry because they currently supply approximately half of the gas required by NLNG.
TotalEnergies had announced the agreement to sell its interest to Vaaris on January 14, 2026. The completion of the transaction brings the divestment process to a close.
Under the agreement, Vaaris acquired TotalEnergies’ 10 per cent participating interest, together with the associated rights and obligations, in 15 licences held by the Renaissance JV that produce mainly oil.
The transaction also covered the transfer of TotalEnergies’ participating interest in the three gas-focused licences, although the company retained its full economic interest in those assets.
According to TotalEnergies, production from the 15 predominantly oil-producing licences represented approximately 16,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day attributable to the company in 2025.
The deal allows TotalEnergies to reduce its direct exposure to the affected oil-producing assets while maintaining its economic participation in gas resources that support Nigeria’s LNG production and export operations.
The Renaissance JV, formerly known as the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) joint venture, operates across 18 licences in the Niger Delta.
The joint venture is owned by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), which holds a 55 per cent interest; Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited, with 30 per cent and responsibility for operating the venture; TotalEnergies EP Nigeria, previously holding 10 per cent; and Agip Energy and Natural Resources Nigeria, with the remaining five per cent before the recent divestment transactions.
The transaction follows a broader restructuring of ownership in Nigeria’s onshore oil and gas industry, as international energy companies adjust their portfolios and local investors increase their participation in producing assets.
The divestment also comes amid continuing changes in the ownership of the former SPDC joint venture following Shell’s sale of its 30 per cent interest to Renaissance Africa Energy and its consortium partners.
Similarly, Italian energy company Eni recently completed the sale of its Nigerian subsidiary, Agip Energy and Natural Resources Nigeria, to Apex Global Energy Limited, a subsidiary of Sterling Oil Exploration and Energy Production Company.
These transactions are reshaping the ownership structure of the Renaissance JV and strengthening the position of Nigerian-linked investors in the country’s upstream petroleum industry.
Despite the sale, TotalEnergies maintains a substantial presence in Nigeria’s energy sector through its remaining oil and gas interests and downstream operations.
The company said it had operated in Nigeria for more than 60 years and employed over 1,800 people across its various business segments.
Nigeria remains an important contributor to its global hydrocarbon production, with TotalEnergies reporting output of approximately 188,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in the country in 2025.
The company also operates a nationwide distribution network comprising approximately 540 service stations.
Its decision to retain full economic interest in the three gas licences underscores the continued importance of natural gas to its Nigerian portfolio, particularly given the assets’ contribution to the supply of feedstock for NLNG.
For Nigeria, the transaction highlights the evolving ownership of mature onshore petroleum assets and the continuing significance of gas-producing fields to the country’s LNG export capacity.
While the sale transfers TotalEnergies’ interest in the affected licences to Vaaris, the company’s retained economic interest in OMLs 23, 28 and 77 preserves its exposure to gas resources that are critical to Nigeria’s LNG supply chain.