Nigeria has launched its 2025 Petroleum Licensing Bid Round, offering 50 oil and gas blocks across onshore, shallow-water, frontier, and deepwater terrains to attract an estimated $10 billion in new upstream investment.
Announced on Monday by Gbenga Komolafe, Chief Executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), the initiative aims to unlock up to two billion barrels of crude oil reserves over the next decade.
The licensing round is designed to revive declining exploration activity, expand national reserves, and strengthen long-term production capacity.
According to Komolafe, the Commission has published comprehensive guidelines on its portal and will run a transparent two-stage bidding process in line with Section 73 of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021.
With presidential approval, NUPRC listed 50 blocks—15 onshore, 19 shallow-water, 15 frontier, and one deepwater—spanning diverse basins across the country.
Projections show that when fully operational, these blocks could collectively produce up to 400,000 barrels of oil per day.
Komolafe highlighted that transparency remains central, noting the six-month bid cycle builds on successes from the 2022 Mini-Bid Round and the highly praised 2024 Licensing Round.
He recalled that the 2024 process earned commendation from NEITI and concluded without petitions, restoring confidence in Nigeria’s licensing framework.
The Petroleum Industry Act, enacted in 2021, seeks to reverse years of dwindling investment through clearer regulations and competitive fiscal terms.
The 2025 Bid Round is now positioned as a key pillar in Nigeria’s strategy to deepen investor participation, strengthen indigenous involvement, and reinforce its standing as a competitive global energy destination.