The final draft of Nigerias oil law has been approved by the countrys cabinet
The draft, which has taken around five years to formulate, will be sent to President Goodluck Jonathan before going to parliament in a few days, the oil minister was reported by Reuters as saying.
It is hoped that the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) will allow billions of dollars of investment to be pumped into exploration and production in Nigeria and allow the recovery of the country's crude production.
"(Cabinet) today approved the final draft of the new PIB. We expect that within the next few days Mister President will forward it to the national assembly," oil minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, said.
"The new PIB is going to make the oil industry more competitive and accountable. It proposes revolutionary changes in the industry."
Under the plans, Nigeria's state oil company will be partly privatised, oil company profits will be taxed at a rate of 20 per cent for deep offshore and 50 per cent for shallow or onshore and the oil minister will be given supervisory powers over all oil institutions.
The current draft, which still has various hurdles to overcome before becoming law, is believed to favour foreign oil companies more than previous drafts.
The PIB would also mean that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) would be split and an independent National Oil Company formed.
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