Nigeria’s 40-block oil and gas bid portal due November 20

Nigeria’s upstream petroleum regulator says its bid portal for a 2026 licensing round offering 40 oil and gas blocks is due to open November 20, giving prospective local and international investors a date to begin submitting bids. Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, chief executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), announced the date during a roundtable at the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference. The commission said the round would offer 40 blocks. The portal opening is scheduled, and the announcement does not establish that bidding has begun. Eyesan urged investors to consider Nigeria’s upstream sector, saying the government had introduced fiscal incentives and steps to address costs, delays and project execution risks. She attributed improvements in the country’s investment climate partly to the Petroleum Industry Act, enacted in 2021, and executive orders signed by President Bola Tinubu. Those assessments were made by the regulator; the announcements do not independently establish how investors view the conditions or whether the measures have increased investment. The commission’s chief executive also cited Nigeria’s gas resources as...