Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited, which acquired Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited’s former joint venture assets in March 2025, has relaunched its Vendors Financing Scheme (RVFS), with 13 financial institutions committing a subscribed financing portfolio of $4.1 billion and ₦435 billion to indigenous oil and gas contractors.
The scheme was relaunched at a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signing ceremony in Lagos on 14 October 2026, as Renaissance seeks to expand production and strengthen the capacity of Nigerian oilfield service companies supporting its operations.
The financing portfolio comprises dollar- and naira-denominated facilities for local contractors executing projects for the company. Although the scheme initially targeted a portfolio of $1 billion and ₦100 billion, its subscribed commitments have exceeded those levels.
The programme builds on a contractor financing initiative established in 2010 under Shell. Renaissance said the scheme had recorded no defaults since its inception, while its registered vendor base has grown from at least 950 to more than 1,320.
Between 2017 and 2025, the programme disbursed and liquidated $1.3 billion, according to the company.
13 financial institutions participate in the scheme
The participating institutions are First Bank, Guaranty Trust Bank, Zenith Bank, Access Bank, United Bank for Africa, Stanbic IBTC Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, First City Monument Bank, Sterling Bank, Wema Bank, Union Bank, The Infrastructure Bank and African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank).
According to information published by Renaissance, commercial banks account for 86% of participating institutions, while development finance institutions and other financial institutions account for 7% each.
Tony Attah, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Renaissance Africa Energy Company, said the expanded financing arrangement would support contractors executing projects required to deliver the company's growth strategy.
Attah noted that the programme had evolved considerably since its introduction during the Shell era, when it began with a fund of approximately ₦1 billion before developing into a broader contractor financing initiative.
He added that participating banks were offering contractors more competitive interest rates than they might obtain by approaching lenders independently.
PETAN highlights financing benefits for local contractors
Wole Ogunsanya, Chairman of the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria (PETAN), welcomed the scheme as a potential response to financing constraints facing indigenous oilfield service companies.
Local contractors often contend with high borrowing costs, short repayment periods and stringent collateral requirements, which can limit their ability to acquire equipment and mobilise for oil and gas projects.
Ogunsanya said contractors executing confirmed projects could access financing through the participating banks without conventional collateral, subject to verification of their contracts by Renaissance.
He noted that borrowing rates from Nigerian banks could range between 10% and 12%, expressing the hope that the facility could reduce financing costs to between 8% and 9%.
The scheme is also expected to support equipment acquisition over the next four to five years, as indigenous service providers invest in the capacity required to execute more complex projects.
According to Ogunsanya, equipment acquired through the facility could also be deployed for other operators when it is not required for Renaissance's projects, potentially extending the benefits to the wider oilfield services industry.
Financing supports Renaissance's production ambitions
The relaunch comes as Renaissance pursues higher oil and gas production following its acquisition of Shell's former joint venture assets in March 2025.
Attah said the company increased production by 100,000 barrels per day within 100 days of taking over the assets.
Renaissance has set a target of producing 500,000 barrels of oil per day by 2030. Its gas production ambitions include more than 2.2 billion standard cubic feet per day for energy supply and an additional 1 billion standard cubic feet per day for industrialisation.
The company has positioned the vendor financing scheme as one of the mechanisms for funding the contractors and service providers required to support this expansion.
Attah said access to financing would be critical to executing the company's production growth plans and supporting Nigeria's broader ambition to raise oil production to 3 million barrels per day.
Olusegun Banwo, Executive Vice President, Finance, Strategy and Commercial, and Chief Financial Officer of Renaissance, said the scheme's performance would be assessed by its impact on contractors and project delivery rather than the size of its financing commitments alone.
He identified key measures as the volume of financing disbursed, the speed at which eligible vendors access funds, and improvements in contractor mobilisation, project execution, Nigerian content and production.
Banwo also said the company's ambition was to enable indigenous businesses to expand alongside Renaissance as it pursues its longer-term production objectives.
From the Shell Kobo Fund to the Renaissance scheme
The programme began as the Shell Kobo Fund, which provided contractors with financing through three partner banks. In 2016, it was rebranded the Shell Contractor Fund and expanded to include five additional banks.
Renaissance said the scheme's latest expansion process began in April 2026, followed by an expression of interest in May, commercial bids in June and requests for revised bids in July. The 13 participating financial institutions were selected in August, with executive alignment completed in September ahead of the October MoU signing.
The expanded scheme is intended to improve access to working capital and equipment financing for indigenous contractors executing Renaissance projects.
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