NUPRC receives N4.34trn revenue, gives out 12 oil blocks for 2024 bid round

Ilenre Irele

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) says it has generated N4.344 trillion as revenue in 2023, which is 15 per cent increase from N3.78 trillion it generated in 2022.

The Commission’s Chief Executive, Engr. Gbenga Komolafe, made this known at the inaugural NEITI House Dialogue in Abuja, yesterday.

He stated further that the commission had begun the process for the 2024 oil bid round with 12 oil blocks on offer and seven deep offshore blocks from last year’s bid round and that the process would be concluded by January 2025.

He explained that the new greenfield oil blocks on offer were six acreages located on continental shelf, four deep offshore blocks and two onshore blocks in the Niger Delta.

He assured that NUPRC had activated regulations for a conducive investment environment by promoting global competitiveness, ensuring regulatory certainty and vacating entry barriers. According to him, some of the criteria for the acquisition of the blocks are technical competence, financial capacity and viability.

Komolafe said: “The licencing round that we are putting in place is designed to enhance the quality data set and it is going to be conducted in a fair, and competitive bidding process in a non-discriminating manner.”

Komolafe, while speaking at a divestment workshop in Abuja, disclosed that the commission had established guidelines for the proposed divestment of Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigerian Limited (SPDC) assets through a sale by its shareholders of all the issued shares of SPDC to Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited.

He explained that the SPDC JV OMLs were originally awarded as Oil Exploration Licence -1(OEL1) on January 1, 1949 covering the whole of southern Nigeria and Cameroon. Ultimately, the assets were converted to OMLs on April 1, 1962 and subsequently renewed in 2014 and 2018 for 20 years.

Komolafe said: “To date, the assets have achieved a cumulative production of 5.35 billion barrels of crude oil, 165. 57 million barrels of condensate, 9.51 trillion cubic feet of Associated Gas and 3.75 trillion cubic feet of Non-Associated Gas, contributing immensely to the achievement of Nigeria’s crude and condensate output.

“The assets being considered have an estimated total reserve of 4.96 billion barrels of oil, 1.77 billion barrels of condensate, 28.16 trillion cubic feet of associated gas and 28.11 trillion cubic feet of nonassociated gas.

This makes a significant contribution to the nation’s hydrocarbon resources. Additionally, these assets hold P3 reserves estimated at 2.85 billion barrels of oil, 850.85 million barrels of condensate, 11.3 trillion cubic feet of associated gas and 12.26 trillion cubic feet of NonAssociated Gas.”