The Federal Government has opened the 2026 oil licensing round, offering 40 blocks across land, shallow water and deepwater terrains as it seeks fresh investment in Nigeria’s upstream petroleum sector.
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission said successful bidders would be expected to develop the assets, warning that securing a licence would not be enough.
NUPRC Chief Executive Officer, Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, announced the licensing round on Tuesday at the commission’s fifth anniversary celebration in Abuja.
Eyesan said the round followed approval from President Bola Tinubu and the Minister of Petroleum Resources, adding that the blocks were open to investors with the required technical competence, financial capacity and commitment to develop the country’s petroleum resources.
“The Nigeria 2026 Licensing Round is hereby announced. This round offers 40 blocks across land, shallow water and deepwater terrains,” she said.
She said competition for upstream capital was becoming increasingly intense, making clear rules, predictable processes and reliable data essential to attracting investors.
Eyesan said the commission would make the 2026 exercise more transparent by publishing its evaluation methodology and results more fully and requiring bidders to disclose their beneficial owners.
She said the measures followed recommendations by the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative after its review of the 2022 to 2024 licensing rounds.
According to Eyesan, NEITI found the previous processes to be generally professional, transparent and inclusive, while identifying areas for improvement in evaluation methodology, disclosure of results, public access to bidding information and beneficial ownership disclosure.
She said NUPRC had accepted the recommendations and would incorporate them into the new licensing process.
Eyesan also promised to publish the bidding timetable at the outset and adhere to it, stressing that investors needed certainty to secure board approvals, mobilise funds and prepare their bids.
She said the commission would use its licensing website and portal, virtual data room, webinars and a dedicated help desk to improve communication with prospective bidders.
“All material clarification will be shared with all participants. No bidder will know what others do not,” she said.
The NUPRC boss said the commission had awarded 57 Petroleum Prospecting Licences through three licensing exercises since the Petroleum Industry Act came into force in 2021.
The exercises comprised the 2022 Deep Offshore Mini Bid Round, the 2024 Nigerian Licensing Round and the 2025 Nigerian Licensing Round.
She said the 2025 round attracted 200 bids from 143 companies, with 31 companies emerging winners of 37 blocks.
Eyesan said the latest round would also help expand exploration beyond traditional producing areas, noting that frontier basins such as the Anambra Basin, Benue Trough, Chad Basin and Benin Basin had attracted investor interest in recent exercises.
She said assets offered in previous rounds, subject to successful development, could add about 500 million barrels to Nigeria’s reserves and at least 300,000 barrels per day of crude oil and condensate production within five years.
The assets were also expected to contribute about 20 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves and 50 million standard cubic feet of gas per day of production, supporting the Federal Government’s Decade of Gas initiative.
Eyesan warned successful bidders that the commission would hold them to their development obligations.
“To those who will win, my message remains the same: Drill or Drop. A licence is a commitment to Nigeria, not a trophy on the wall,” she said.
She said details of the blocks, qualification requirements and participation procedures would be published on the NUPRC website and dedicated licensing portal.
Eyesan urged Nigerian and international investors to participate, saying the commission was committed to making Nigeria a more predictable and competitive destination for upstream investment.
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