NUPRC Targets $10bn Investment, Lists 50 Oil, Gas Blocks in New Licensing Round

•Komolafe: 2bn barrels of crude, 400,000bpd oil output expected in 10 years

•CCE pledges transparent process, says no chance for briefcase investors

•Bid round to last six months, commission launches portal

•Licensing process for sale of blocks to be fully automated

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) yesterday kicked off the 2025 oil and gas licensing round, announcing that it is targeting $10 billion in investment tied to the current bid cycle.

The upstream regulator also launched an online portal for would-be bidders, stressing that during the licensing round, expected to last six months from December 1, 50 oil and gas blocks across onshore, swamp/shallow water and offshore terrains spanning diverse basins will be up for sale.

Addressing journalists in Abuja, Chief Executive Officer of NUPRC, Gbenga Komolafe, stated that besides the $10 billion investment target, two billion barrels of oil and an estimated 400,000 barrels per day of production volumes were expected when the blocks become fully operational.

Komolafe said the announcement was in line with Section 73 of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, which prescribes a fair, transparent and competitive bidding process.

Following the approval of President Bola Tinubu, Komolafe stated that of the 50 assets up for bid, 15 were onshore assets; 19 were from shallow water; frontier assets were 15; while the deep water asset was one.

He said the key objectives of the Nigeria 2025 licensing round included to grow oil and gas reserves through aggressive exploration and development efforts; increase Nigeria’s production capacity and government revenue; as well as create thousands of direct and indirect jobs, from technical oil-field roles to supporting services, especially in regions where blocks were located.

“The Nigeria 2025 licensing round is, therefore, expected to attract about $10 billion in investments and add up to two billion barrels of oil output over the next 10 years with an estimated 400,000 barrels/day of production volumes when the blocks are fully operational,” he stated.

According to him, the exercise will lead to expansion opportunities for gas utilisation and development in Nigeria, in view of energy transition, as well as reinforce Nigeria’s commitment to openness and transparency in line with the principles of the Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (EITI).

Komolafe said the licensing round will enhance indigenous participation to drive skills development, knowledge retention, and effective technology transfer within the sector, and contribute to long-term global energy sufficiency.

He said the commission, as a business enabler, and in line with the president’s approval, had also reduced the applicable signature bonuses in order to attract investments.

In today’s volatile global energy landscape, the NUPRC chief executive stated that certainty and predictability had become the true currencies of investment, explaining that NUPRC has, therefore, moved to de-risk exploration.

To that end, he stated that through extensive multi-client surveys, the commission had reprocessed thousands of kilometres of 2D and 3D seismic data, producing sharper, higher-resolution images of Nigeria’s petroleum systems and reducing the uncertainties that once hindered exploration decisions.

Komolafe stated, “For investors, this means entering a market where uncertainty is shrinking and where opportunity is backed by the richest, highest-quality subsurface data available anywhere in Africa. This wealth of high-quality geo-physical datasets means lower exploration risk, improved probability of discovery, faster appraisal timelines, reduced entry costs and accelerated journey from licensing to first oil or gas.”

He acknowledged that transparency was key to investor confidence, stressing that to ensure that the bidding process is credible and seamless, the commission has rolled out guidelines, which are now available on its website.

Besides, he revealed that NUPRC had adopted a two-stage bidding process for the award of the blocks, comprising a qualification stage and a bid stage.

The NUPRC chief executive stated, “The qualification stage involves the submission and evaluation of applications by interested parties or consortia in accordance with the regulation and the guidelines. Applicants shall provide all information required for this stage.

“Only applicants who are adjudged qualified and subsequently shortlisted by the commission shall proceed to the bid stage and will be required to execute a confidentiality agreement prior to participation.

“At the bid stage, shortlisted applicants or bidders shall submit their technical and commercial bids in accordance with the regulation, the guidelines, and any other bidding documents issued by the commission.

“Given our commitment to transparency and alignment with best practices, the bid process will be automated and digital. Winners will emerge at the commercial bid process.”

Commenting on the last licensing initiatives, including the 2022 mini-bid round, and the “historic” 2024 licensing round, Komolafe emphasised that they were conducted with unprecedented levels of transparency, unmatched global competitiveness, and robust investor engagement and roadshows.

He said the year 2024 licensing rounds were concluded remarkably without any petitions nor litigations, and commended by NEITI and other stakeholders.

He stated, “Consolidating on the achievements of the 2024 licensing round, the NUPRC is proud to formally announce the commencement of the Nigeria 2025 licensing round and the launch of the licensing round online portal br2025.nuprc.gov.ng.

“It is important to indicate to prospective bidders that our emphasis is not on date of incorporation or age of companies given the fact that the development of an asset is based on professionalism, funding and technical capacity.”

Komolafe said the commission will effectively publish on the licensing round portal, the licensing round guidelines, candidate asset and maps, teasers, activity charts, and other details for proper guidance.

He stated that the Nigeria 2025 licensing round was a major window for investments in Nigeria, as it offered easier participation, transparency and comprehensive subsurface data, pointing out that it further reflects Tinubu’s charge that “Nigeria must not only be open for business; Nigeria must be irresistible for investment.”

Speaking on the impact of the last bid round on Nigeria’s overall crude production, Komolafe said all awardees from last year’s licensing round had paid signature bonuses and were in various stages of exploration and development.

However, he explained that new barrels took time to materialise, saying the fact that a licensing round was done last year does not immediately translate into additional barrels.

He also dismissed insinuations that briefcase investors – people with no real capital, proven track record or operational capacity – will hijack the process, stressing that everything has been done to ensure that the current bid meets global standards.