By Obinna Uballa
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has warned that only companies with proven technical competence and strong financial capacity will qualify in the 2025 licensing round, as it formally opens bidding for 50 oil and gas blocks across five sedimentary basins.
The Commission said the exercise is aimed at eliminating speculative participation and repositioning Nigeria’s upstream sector as a transparent, rules-based destination for long-term investment.
The Chief Executive of the NUPRC, Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, disclosed this on Wednesday during the 2025 Licensing Round pre-bid webinar, where the regulator outlined the framework, evaluation criteria and commercial terms guiding the process.
Eyesan described the licensing round as a strategic intervention to grow reserves, boost production and strengthen Nigeria’s energy security amid a rapidly evolving global energy landscape.
“This upstream sector is serious business. It is for long-term investment, and it is an open invitation to partnership, transparency and shared responsibility as we work together to shape the next phase of Nigeria’s upstream oil and gas industry,” she said.
According to her, the Commission has adopted a strictly merit-based selection process, placing technical competence and financial strength at the centre of the evaluation.
“Only candidates with strong technical and financial credentials, professionalism and credible plans will move forward. Winners will be selected through a transparent, merit-based process that takes them from award to exploration, appraisal and ultimately full production,” Eyesan stated.
She said the 50 oil and gas blocks on offer are spread across five of Nigeria’s seven sedimentary basins, giving investors access to both frontier and mature assets.
“In this licensing round, 50 oil and gas blocks across Nigeria are available, allowing investors to access the country’s key basins and create long-term value,” she said.
Eyesan added that, with the approval of President Bola Tinubu, the Commission had reviewed the commercial structure of the licensing round to lower entry barriers while discouraging unserious bidders.
She disclosed that signature bonuses for the 2025 licensing round have been set within a $3 million to $7 million range, with greater emphasis placed on work programmes and speed to production rather than aggressive cash bids.
“With the approval of His Excellency, President Bola Tinubu, signature bonuses for the 2025 licensing round are now set within a value range of $3m–$7m. This reduces entry barriers and places greater weight on what truly matters – technical capability, credible work programmes, financial strength and the ability to deliver production within the shortest possible time,” she said.
According to Eyesan, the adjustment reflects global capital mobility and Nigeria’s need to remain competitive in attracting serious, long-term upstream investors.
The NUPRC boss explained that the licensing round would follow a five-stage process, including registration and pre-qualification, data acquisition, technical bid submission, evaluation and a commercial bid conference.
She stressed that the entire exercise would comply strictly with the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, with extensive deployment of digital tools to ensure transparency and accountability.
“The bid process will comply strictly with the PIA, promote the use of digital tools for smooth data access and remain open to public, international and institutional scrutiny through NEITI and other oversight agencies,” Eyesan said.
She added that all licensing materials have been available on the Commission’s portal since December 1, 2025, with dedicated support channels created to respond promptly to investor enquiries.
Concluding, Eyesan said the 2025 licensing round represents a strong signal to global investors that Nigeria’s upstream sector has been re-engineered for long-term value creation.
“This is not merely a bidding exercise. It is a clear signal of a re-imagined upstream sector, anchored on the rule of law, driven by data, aligned with global investment realities and focused on long-term value creation,” she said.
In a technical presentation, the Director of Lease Administration, Exploration and Acreage Management at NUPRC, Amber Ndoma-Egba, said the blocks on offer cut across the Chad Basin, Benue Trough, Anambra Basin, Bida Basin and Niger Delta Basin.
He said technical evaluation would focus on subsurface understanding, exploration work programmes, development concepts, sustainability, decarbonisation objectives, host community plans and lifecycle management.
“We assess your understanding of the block, subsurface evaluation, exploration programme, development and production concept, sustainability and host community development. Technically weak firms will not scale through this process,” Ndoma-Egba said.
On commercial terms, he disclosed that the Commission had approved a minimum work performance security of one per cent, although bidders could increase it voluntarily to improve their technical scores.
