Before You Sign: The 2027 Legal Guide to Africa–U.S. Energy Deals

At a glance

• Central Africa, January 1, 2027: extractive companies in the CEMAC zone (including Gabon) must repatriate 50% of foreign currency, up from 35% — and 70% from 2028.
• Nigeria: a new 40-block licensing round is open, and every bidder must disclose its beneficial owners.
• Gabon: the State is now a producer, and ExxonMobil, bp and Shell have signed deepwater MoUs — but no production sharing contracts yet.
• Plan the exit before the entry: the Certificate of Capital Importation in Nigeria; BEAC rules in CEMAC.
• U.S. law travels with you: the FCPA and OFAC sanctions apply abroad — and what matters is where you can actually enforce.

Africa–U.S. energy deals rarely fail because the opportunity was bad. They fail because of avoidable mistakes made early: a contract written for one legal system and signed under another, a company formed in the wrong place, or money that can go in but cannot come back out. This guide maps the rules that decide those questions in Nigeria, Gabon and the broader OHADA zone as 2027 begins — and it is written for the people who carry the risk: U.S. companies and investors doing cross-border energy deals between Africa and the United States.

It is a practical briefing from Georges C. Nama, Esq., a business and energy lawyer in Texas with more than 25 years of practice that began in Gabon, written with Prof. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu — Nigeria's former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources and a former President of OPEC. Between us, we have sat on both sides of these tables: advising a government, and advising the companies that negotiate with one.

Five things that change in 2027

1. 1Currency rules in Central Africa tighten on January 1, 2027. CEMAC extractive companies must repatriate 50% of foreign currency (70% from 2028). Build it into your cash-flow model and your financing terms from day one — and into the way you structure the entity.
2. 2Nigeria is opening acreage, with ownership in full view. The NUPRC's 40-block round requires every bidder to disclose its beneficial owners. Nominee and SPV structures will be visible to the regulator — plan your Nigerian entity and consortium accordingly.
3. 3Gabon is resetting its oil sector, and the State is now a producer. Gabon Oil Company bought Assala and Tullow's assets; the majors are circling. For a U.S. investor, the national oil company may be partner, counterparty and competitor at once — a classic OHADA / francophone Africa negotiation.
4. 4The exit must be planned before the entry. In Nigeria, the Certificate of Capital Importation is the record you rely on to send dividends and sale proceeds back out. In CEMAC, the rules come from the regional central bank. Address repatriation in the contract itself.
5. 5U.S. law travels with you. The FCPA and OFAC sanctions apply to U.S. persons abroad, and your choice of forum decides whether you can enforce where the assets sit. Africans structuring a U.S. bridge should also weigh investment-related immigration, including the E-2 treaty investor visa.

Download the full guide (PDF) ↓

What's inside the guide

• Nigeria: new acreage, closer scrutiny — licensing, the downstream court ruling, NNPC compliance pressure, and the entry/exit rules that do not change.
• Gabon, francophone Africa and OHADA: the oil-sector reset, the five layers of law, CEMAC's 2027 step-up, and the 2026–2027 opportunity set.
• Elsewhere in the Gulf of Guinea: Ghana and Liberia.
• OPEC context, and the U.S. rules that travel with every Africa–U.S. deal.
• The legal checklist to run before you sign, and ten questions that will shape 2027.

Questions we hear most

Who wrote this guide?

It was written by Georges C. Nama, Esq., Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Kachikwu & Nama Law Firm and a business and energy lawyer in Texas with more than 25 years of practice beginning in Gabon, with Prof. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu, Nigeria's former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources and a former President of OPEC.

What changes for CEMAC countries on January 1, 2027?

Extractive companies in the CEMAC zone, which includes Gabon, must repatriate 50% of their foreign-currency earnings from January 1, 2027 (up from 35%), rising to 70% from January 1, 2028. It should shape your cash-flow model and financing terms now.

Does a U.S. company need a local entity to do business in Nigeria?

Generally yes. A foreign company that intends to carry on business in Nigeria must incorporate a Nigerian entity first and register with the NIPC before starting business. We cover this on our Nigeria business and company formation pages.

How do I get help with an Africa–U.S. energy deal?

Start with a free 30-minute consultation. We advise on oil, gas and energy agreements, cross-border transactions, contracts, entity structuring, real estate and investment-related immigration.

About the authors

Georges C. Nama, Esq. is Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Kachikwu & Nama Law Firm, a business lawyer admitted to practice law by the Supreme Court of Texas with more than 25 years of legal practice, beginning in Gabon, in oil and gas, mining, infrastructure, real estate and immigration law. He works in English, French and Spanish.

Prof. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu, Co-Founder, is a Harvard-educated lawyer who served as Nigeria's Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, as President of OPEC, and as Group Managing Director of the NNPC.

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