Nigeria’s 2024 Oil block license auction attracting huge interest from investors – NURPC

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has announced that the 2024 oil block licensing round has generated significant interest from both international and local investors.  

The head of the commission, Gbenga Komolafe, made this disclosure in a statement to Reuters on Thursday.  

Komolafe stated that Nigeria initiated the licensing round in April, offering a total of 19 onshore and deepwater oil blocks to investors. 

He noted that due to the high level of interest from investors, the bid has now been expanded to include an additional 17 deep offshore blocks in the 2024 licensing round. 

“We have undertaken more exploratory activities and as a result acquired more data to expand the offer and extend the deadline. This has given rise to tremendous interest from investors,” Komolafe said.  

Factors Responsible for Positive Cheers from Investors 

Furthermore, Komolafe mentioned that the commission has made the offer more attractive by reducing the entry fees, known as the signature bonus, from approximately $200 million per field to $10 million. 

He assured that the country has committed to a fair and transparent process, allowing online submissions through its website. 

Bidders also have the option to lease individual oil blocks or clusters of blocks, he added. 

Backstory 

Earlier on Tuesday, It was reported that announced a ten-day extension for the registration and submission of pre-qualification documents for the 2024 oil block licensing round.  

Komolafe stated that the registration and submission of pre-qualification documents, initially scheduled to close on June 25, 2024, had been extended by 10 days and would now close on July 5, 2024.  

“In pursuit of the Commission’s commitment to derive value from the country’s abundant oil and gas reserves and increase production, the Commission has been working assiduously with multi-client companies to undertake more exploratory activities.  

“This is to acquire more data to foster and encourage further investment in the Nigerian upstream sector,” he said.   

What you should know 

• In May, NUPRC announced the commencement of the 2024 oil block licensing round.  
• The Commission is seeking to deepen the exploitation of the country’s estimated 37.5 billion barrels of crude oil and 209.26 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves. 
• Nigeria is seeking to halt the flow of investments to African rivals Angola and Namibia by improving the ease of acquiring oil blocks. 
• Nigeria, a member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), has seen its oil production decline from around 2 million barrels a decade ago to just over 1.4 million barrels per day. 
• Oil majors are leaving onshore fields – prone to sabotage and frequent claims for compensation for spills – to focus on deepwater fields where disruptions are less common.