Regulator Offers 50 Oil Blocks As 2025 Licensing Round Opens

Nigeria’s upstream regulator on Monday announced the start of its 2025 oil licensing round, offering 50 blocks for bidding to boost output and attract new investments.

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission stated that the round comprises 15 onshore blocks, 19 in shallow waters, 15 frontier assets, and one deepwater block.

“The Nigeria 2025 licensing round is expected to attract about $10 billion in investment and add up to 2 billion barrels of oil output over the next 10 years, with an estimated 400,000 barrels per day of production when fully operational,” NUPRC chief executive Gbenga Komolafe told reporters.

Komolafe said awardees from last year’s licensing round had paid signature bonuses and were in various stages of exploration and development, but noted that new barrels take time to materialise. “The fact that a licensing round was done last year does not immediately translate into additional barrels,” he said.

Nigeria, which relies on oil for most of its export earnings, is seeking to revive production after years of underinvestment and security challenges in its oil-rich Niger Delta.

The NUPRC said the bid exercise is scheduled to last for six months, with effect from  1st December, 2025.

He said the exercise was designed to increase the country’s crude oil production to 2 billion barrels over the next 10 years, once the blocks are fully operational.

His words: “The Nigeria 2025 licensing round is therefore expected to attract about $10 billion in investment and add up to 2 billion barrels of oil output over the next 10 years, with an estimated 400,000 barrels per day of production volumes when the blocks are fully operational.”

He said that of the 50 blocks, 15 are onshore assets, 19 are in shallow water, 15 are in frontier areas, and one is a deep-water asset.

According to him, the key objectives of the Nigeria 2025 licensing round are first, to grow oil and gas reserves through aggressive exploration and development efforts, as previously reiterated.

He added that it was intended to increase Nigeria’s production capacity and government revenue.

Komolafe also said it was aimed at creating thousands of direct and indirect jobs, from technical oilfield roles to supporting services, logistics, supply chain, infrastructure, and local content, especially in regions where blocks are located. Expand opportunities for gas utilisation and development in Nigeria in the field of energy transition.

He said the Commission understands that in today’s volatile global energy landscape, certainty and predictability have become the true currencies of investment.

According to him, the NUPRC has therefore moved to de-risk exploration.

He said through extensive multi-client surveys, the Commission has reprocessed thousands of kilometres of 2D and 3D seismic data, producing sharper, high-resolution images of our petroleum systems and reducing the uncertainties that once ended exploration decisions.

For prospective investors, Komolafe said, this means entering a market where uncertainty is shrinking and where opportunity is backed by the richest, high-quality subsurface data available anywhere in Africa.

He added that this wealth of high-quality geophysical datasets means lower exploration risk, improved probability of discovery, faster appraisal timelines, reduced entry costs and accelerated journey from licensing to first oil and gas.

Announcing the launch of the portal, he said, “Consolidating on the achievements of the 2024 licensing round, the Nigeria Offshore Petroleum Regulatory Commission 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.

“This announcement is in line with the provisions of Section 73 of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021, which prescribes a fair, transparent and competitive bidding process.”