•120 projects attract $47.6bn investment since 2024

•Nigeria accounts for 38% of Africa’s upstream investment

•1.82mbpd figure includes condensate

By Obas Esiedesa, Abuja

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, NUPRC, yesterday announced the offer of 40 oil blocks in the 2026 licensing round, as Nigeria intensifies efforts to attract fresh capital into the upstream sector, even as oil and condensate production rose to 1.821 million barrels per day.

The blocks, covering land, shallow water and deepwater terrains, are open to investors with the technical competence, financial capacity and commitment to develop Nigeria’s petroleum resources.

NUPRC Chief Executive, Mrs Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, announced the licensing round at the Commission’s fifth anniversary celebration in Abuja, saying it followed the approval of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Minister of Petroleum Resources.

“Ladies and gentlemen, the wait is over. It is with great joy that I announce that pursuant to the approval of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Honourable Minister of Petroleum Resources, the Nigerian 2026 Licensing Round is hereby announced.

“This round offers 40 blocks across land, shallow water and deepwater terrains. I can see my IOC is already permutating.

They are open to investors with the technical competence, financial capability and, above all, the commitment to develop Nigeria’s petroleum resources,” Eyesan said.

She said the exercise would feature enhanced transparency, including mandatory disclosure of the beneficial owners of every bidder and fuller publication of the evaluation methodology and results.

“We will not rest on our oars. Competition for upstream capital is fierce, and it grows fiercer by the day. Investors have choices. They go where the rules are clear, where the process is predictable and where data can be trusted,” she said.

The announcement came as NUPRC disclosed that it had approved 120 oil and gas field development plans involving about $47.6 billion in capital expenditure since 2024.

According to Eyesan, the projects could add 1.74 million barrels of oil per day and 13.9 billion standard cubic feet of gas per day to Nigeria’s production capacity.

“Since 2024, we have approved 120 field development plans, representing approximately $47.6 billion in capital expenditure. These projects have the potential to add 1.74 million barrels of oil per day and 13.9 billion standard cubic feet of gas per day to our production capacity,” she said.

She said the approvals included the $10.3 billion Zabazaba-Etan development in OPL 245, which had been delayed by disputes for more than two decades.

Eyesan further disclosed that Nigeria accounted for 38 per cent of all upstream investment sanctioned in Africa in 2025, compared with an average of four per cent between 2015 and 2023.

“This makes Nigeria the leading destination for upstream investment in Africa for the second consecutive year,” she said.

On production, Eyesan said oil and condensate output rose from about 1.44 million barrels per day in 2022 to an average of 1.75 million barrels per day in the first seven months of 2026, while gas production increased from 6.83 to about 7.97bcf/d.

However, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, cited a more recent figure of 1.821 million barrels per day, including condensate.

“Today we’re doing, as of yesterday when you sent the report to me, we’re doing 1.821 million barrels a day. That is over 80 per cent of success,” Lokpobiri said.

He said production was barely one million barrels per day, including condensates, when the Tinubu administration assumed office in 2023.

“Once we are able to do that, I believe that all those people who are coming with petro-dollars are bound to come to Nigeria,” he said, urging NUPRC to issue licences to investors with the requisite financial and technical capacity.

Lokpobiri also disclosed that drilling activities had increased from fewer than 10 rigs in 2023 to more than 70 currently.

Eyesan said NUPRC had reduced approval time for reactivating shut-in wells from between two and six weeks to two and four hours, while approving 37 new crude evacuation routes to reduce production shut-ins.

She said the Commission was targeting three million barrels of oil per day and 12bcf/d of gas by 2030, while entering an “age of compliance” under which the performance of licensees and lessees would be scored and published.

President Tinubu, represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima, said petroleum resources would support economic diversification.

“Our aim is to use our petroleum resources to build this diversified economy. Our gas can power homes and factories. Petroleum earnings support a stable naira and fund the federation,” he said.

He said the Deep Offshore Oil and Gas Project Incentive Tax Remission Order 2026 was designed to unlock up to $50 billion in new investment, beginning with the Bonga Southwest project.

Also speaking, NNPC Limited GCEO, Mr Bayo Ojulari, said improved regulatory clarity and faster approvals were helping to attract investment.

“Our focus remains on growing results, increasing production, accelerating gas development, and creating long-term value for our shareholders and the Nigerian people,” Ojulari said.

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