The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has announced that a new oil and gas licensing round will commence on 1 December. The initiative is designed to build upon the country's encouraging upstream investment climate.

Objectives and Production Goals

The primary goal of the licensing round is to stimulate further exploration, with the aim of increasing Nigeria's oil production capacity by 1 million barrels per day. This would raise the national capacity from the current level of approximately 1.7 million bpd. The NUPRC Chief Executive confirmed the round is proceeding following approval from the Minister of Petroleum Resources.

London Investment Event

The announcement was detailed at a UK event organized by the NUPRC to highlight Nigerian investment opportunities for oil companies and bankers. The event was attended by key executives from major companies including TotalEnergies, ExxonMobil, and Seplat. The official statement regarding the licensing round was released following this event.

Current Upstream Momentum

The NUPRC Chief Executive highlighted the positive turnaround in Nigeria's Exploration & Production (E&P) sector since the COVID-19 pandemic. Key indicators of this recovery include the government's sanctioning of 46 field development plans since January 2025 and a significant increase in the rig count to over 60 units, with at least 40 of these being active.

Infrastructure Requirements

To achieve and sustain the targeted 1 million bpd incremental capacity, the official outlined the need for specific infrastructure, including:

• Floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) units
• Floating storage and offloading (FSO) vessels
• Mobile offshore production units
• Early production facilities

Legislative Assurance for Investors

A senior government official and parliamentarian, the Chairman of the House Committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream), assured investors at the event of legislative stability. He promised that the House of Representatives is committed to the Petroleum Industry Act and will resist proposing any arbitrary legislative changes that could undermine investments.

This material is an AI-assisted summary based on publicly available sources and may contain inaccuracies. For the original and full details, please refer to the source link. Based on materials by Iain Esau. All rights to the original text and images remain with their respective rights holders.