Nigeria's oil regulator has recovered more than 50 unused fields to return them to allocation procedures, its director of acreage management, Olaide Shaw, said in remarks reported by BusinessDay on 12 October. The aim is to hand these assets to investors capable of developing them.
The recovery is part of a campaign launched about two years earlier, according to the head of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, or NUPRC. The recovered assets have been returned to the allocation process to attract new operators.
The move relies on provisions of the petroleum law that allow rights to be withdrawn from companies that fail to advance their programmes. Olaide Shaw explained that some operators keep permits while concentrating their resources on other assets.
The regulator also launched, on 6 October in Abuja, a bid round for 40 blocks located onshore, in shallow water and in deep water. Its managing director, Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, said bidders would be assessed on their technical skills, financial capacity and commitment to developing the resources.
The guidelines must also detail evaluation methods and require the identification of the beneficial owners of bidders, according to the NUPRC. The commission announced that block characteristics and eligibility criteria will be published on its website and on the dedicated portal.
The previous round concluded in July with the selection of 31 companies for 37 blocks. The commission estimates that the assets concerned could add 500 million barrels to reserves and at least 300,000 barrels per day of oil and condensate within five years. These volumes are development prospects, not production already available.