Nigeria has awarded 37 oil and gas exploration blocks to 31 companies after concluding the commercial phase of its 2025 Licensing Round, marking one of the country’s biggest upstream licensing exercises since the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) came into force.
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) said the exercise attracted about 200 bids from 143 companies competing for 37 of the 50 blocks offered across the Niger Delta, offshore fields and several frontier basins.
The commercial bid conference was held on Tuesday in Abuja, bringing to a close the competitive bidding stage of a process that began in late 2025. Ministerial approval and the payment of signature bonuses are the final steps before successful bidders receive their licences.
Among the successful bidders are SSonic Petroleum Limited, CFP Pipeline and Flowlines, Dutchford E&P Limited, Attabanson Global Company Limited, Rosem Energy Limited, Pivot-GIS Limited, Network E&P, Asharami, LexOil, Saratoga, Volante, Blackrock Holdings Limited, Riparian Development and Production Limited, Stardeep Petroleum and Eyre Energy Limited, among others.
Frontier basins attract investors
