Nigeria's Oil Licensing Round Ends with 13 Unbid Blocks

The final stage of Nigeria's 2025 oil and gas licensing round concluded on Tuesday, July 21, 2026, as 143 prequalified companies competed for 37 blocks at a commercial bid conference in Abuja. Officials announced that 13 of the 50 blocks originally offered failed to attract any bids and will be returned for future allocation.

The conference, held at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, was the culmination of a process launched by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) under the Petroleum Industry Act of 2021. The commission's chief executive, Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, described the overall outcome as encouraging, noting that roughly 200 bids were submitted. She stated that the initial interest from nearly 300 companies indicated a positive shift in investor sentiment toward Nigeria's energy sector.

The licensing round was officially announced on November 11, 2025, with the online bid portal opening on December 1, 2025. A pre-bid conference was held in Lagos on January 14, 2026, to explain the guidelines to registered participants. After registration closed on February 27 and a prequalification evaluation was completed on March 16, the field was narrowed from 286 initial...