Bayelsa targets Offshore Oil boom with Nembe-Brass road

Yenegoa, Bayelsa – In a bid to reposition Bayelsa State as a strategic hub in Nigeria’s oil and maritime economy, the state government says it is accelerating the construction of the Nembe-Brass Road to tap into the vast opportunities offered by the country’s offshore oilfields and blue economy.

Speaking at the Bayelsa Media Summit held in Yenagoa on Friday, Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Prof. Nimibofa Ayawei, said the long-envisioned road project is central to unlocking the state’s economic potential, particularly its proximity to deep-sea oil operations such as the Bonga and Egina fields.

The summit, themed “Media, Culture and Identity: Promoting Indigenous Perspectives,” brought together more than 400 media professionals to discuss the evolving role of the press in regional development and cultural preservation.

Delivering a keynote address titled “Setting a Media Agenda for Assured Prosperity,” Ayawei lamented that despite Bayelsa's over 200-kilometre stretch of coastline and its enviable location on the Atlantic corridor, the state has yet to fully benefit economically from its maritime assets.

“Bayelsa has one of the most strategic coastlines in Nigeria,” Ayawei noted. “Yet, we have not seen these resources translate into prosperity for our people. This is a gap we are determined to close.”

According to Ayawei, the ongoing Nembe-Brass Road project—now in its second phase—is a deliberate and strategic investment aimed at providing land access to the Brass Oil Export Terminal and the Atlantic seaboard. Currently, the lack of road infrastructure has made it difficult for oil servicing companies to base their operations in Bayelsa, with most relying instead on facilities in neighbouring Rivers and Delta states.

“What we are seeing,” he explained, “is a situation where air and marine logistics for Nigeria’s offshore oilfields are handled from outside Bayelsa—even though we are closer to these assets than most states. From Port Harcourt or Warri, it can take up to seven hours by vessel to reach the fields. From Brass, it’s less than two.”

Ayawei stressed that improving access to the coast would make Bayelsa the most logical logistics hub for offshore oil operations, enhancing the state’s ability to attract investment and capture tax revenue currently lost to neighbouring jurisdictions.

To that end, the state government has established a dedicated Ministry of Blue Economy, signaling a formal commitment to maritime development as a new pillar of the state’s diversification strategy. The blue economy concept—focused on the sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth—has gained traction globally, and Bayelsa aims to position itself as Nigeria’s leading coastal economy.

“We are deliberately working to hit the Atlantic Ocean by road—to create an integrated corridor that connects land, sea, and offshore energy assets. It’s about making Bayelsa competitive, resilient, and prosperous,” Ayawei said.

He commended the Federal Government under President Bola Tinubu for its continued support and co-financing of the Nembe-Brass project, which is being hailed as one of the most ambitious infrastructure undertakings in the state’s history.

Background: The Strategic Value of the Nembe-Brass Corridor
The Nembe-Brass Road, once considered a near-impossible engineering challenge due to its swampy terrain and complex hydrology, has taken on renewed importance amid efforts to decentralize Nigeria’s oil and gas logistics network. The Brass Oil Export Terminal, historically significant but long underutilized due to poor accessibility, stands to benefit most.

Brass Island also lies in close proximity to several key offshore oilfields operated by international oil companies, including Shell’s Bonga field and TotalEnergies’ Egina field. However, these facilities are currently serviced primarily via the Port Harcourt and Osubi airports, or through marine routes originating from Delta and Rivers states.

With global oil companies increasingly looking for cost-efficient, secure logistics hubs in the Gulf of Guinea, Bayelsa’s effort to assert itself as a natural base for operations could shift the dynamics of Nigeria’s offshore oil economy.