FG to return 13 oil blocks to bid basket, enforces ‘drill or drop’ policy

The Federal Government says 13 oil and gas blocks in the ongoing 2025 Licensing Round will be returned to the bid basket, while successful bidders must commence development promptly or forfeit the assets under its “drill or drop” policy.

Mrs Onitsemeyiwa Eyesan, Commission Chief Executive (CCE), Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja at the Commercial Bid Conference for the Nigeria 2025 Licensing Round.

Eyesan said the 2025 Licensing Round attracted nearly 300 expressions of interest, with 286 companies applying for prequalification.

According to her, 196 companies were prequalified, while 143 firms eventually submitted 200 technical and commercial bids covering 37 oil and gas assets.

“Thirteen blocks have been withdrawn from the current exercise and will be returned to the bid basket for future licensing rounds,” she said.

The commission chief executive said the commercial bid opening would determine the successful bidders, stressing that assets would be awarded to credible operators with the technical and financial capacity to develop them rather than those offering the highest bids.

She said successful bidders must satisfy all post-award conditions within 90 days, warning that failure to do so would invalidate the award.

Eyesan added that undeveloped assets would be withdrawn in line with the commission’s “drill or drop” policy.

She also disclosed that President Bola Tinubu had approved the commencement of the 2026 Licensing Round and encouraged unsuccessful bidders to participate in the next exercise.

According to her, the licensing round is part of the Federal Government’s efforts to expand investment opportunities and deepen Nigeria’s integration into the global energy market through a transparent and competitive process.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that 50 oil and gas blocks were offered in the 2025 Licensing Round across different terrains.

The assets comprise 16 Niger Delta onshore blocks, 18 Niger Delta shallow water blocks, one Niger Delta deep offshore block, three Benin Basin onshore blocks, four Anambra Basin onshore blocks, four Chad Basin onshore blocks and four Benue Trough onshore blocks.

NAN also reports that by the close of bid submission, 143 companies had submitted 200 technical and commercial bids for 37 of the offered assets.

Speaking, Dr Amba Egba, Deputy Director, Leases Administration, Exploration and Acreage Management at NUPRC, said the technical and commercial evaluation process had been fully automated to ensure transparency, fairness and efficiency.

Egba said bidders would be assessed on their proposed field development plans and other technical parameters.

He said the commercial evaluation allocated 20 points to the signature bonus, with bids ranging from three million dollars to seven million dollars.

Our correspondent recalls that the 2025 Licensing Round was announced on Nov. 11, 2025, in line with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), 2021.

The bid portal was inaugurated on Dec. 1, 2025, while a pre-bid conference was held on Jan. 14, 2026, at Eko Hotels and Suites, Lagos.

Registration and submission for prequalification closed on Feb. 27, 2026, while the prequalification exercise was concluded on March 16, 2026.

Out of the 286 companies that applied for prequalification, 196 were cleared to participate in the technical and commercial bid stage, with 143 firms eventually submitting 200 bids for the commercial bid conference.