Russian gas group Gazprom OAO (GAZP.RS) said Wednesday it had signed a cooperation deal on oil and gas exploration in Nigeria.
Gazprom said in a statement that the accord with Nigeria's national oil company covers exploration and production of oil and gas plus associated operations in several projects.
A joint Russian-Nigerian company will develop the projects, it added.
Nigeria was until recently Africa's largest oil exporter but militants seeking a greater share of the wealth in the Niger delta region have waged a campaign of attacks and kidnappings, cutting output sharply.
Angola is now counted as Africa's biggest oil producer, ahead of Nigeria, as a result, according to figures from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.