Thirteen of the 50 oil and gas blocks put up for offer in Nigeria's 2025 Licensing Round will be returned to the national licensing basket after failing to attract any investor bids.

During the commercial bid conference held in Abuja, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission confirmed that prospective investors submitted representations for only 37 of the 50 available blocks.

Despite the unallocated assets, the regulatory body highlighted strong overall participation, noting that 143 companies submitted approximately 200 bids for the remaining blocks. The selection process began with nearly 300 interested firms before being narrowed down to 196 candidates following the prequalification phase.

Overview of the 2025 Licensing Round

The 2025 Licensing Round was officially launched in November 2025 under the framework of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021. The assets on offer spanned seven key sedimentary basins across Nigeria:

• Niger Delta Onshore: 16 blocks

• Shallow Water: 18 blocks

• Deep Offshore: 1 block

• Benin Basin: 3 blocks

• Anambra Basin: 4 blocks

• Chad Basin: 4 blocks

• Benue Trough: 4 blocks

Following the opening of the bid portal in December 2025 and a pre-bid conference in Lagos in January 2026, formal prequalification submissions closed in late February 2026.

To ensure that assets are allocated to capable operators, successful bidders are selected through a weighted evaluation system. Rather than relying solely on financial offers, the criteria assess signature bonus commitments, proposed work plans, and performance security to balance technical expertise, financial capability, and operational capacity.