The Federal Government has ruled out extending more than 50 expired oil licences, insisting that only firms with the financial strength and technical capacity to operate will be allowed to keep them.

Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, made this known at the PENGASSAN Energy and Labour Summit in Abuja. He noted that although over 60 marginal field licences were granted in a recent bid round, fewer than six operators have made the necessary investments to begin production.

According to him, keeping inactive licences in circulation denies Nigeria additional oil output that could have boosted revenues. “If each operator had developed their field, we could already be producing an extra 120,000 barrels daily. Sadly, only a handful have met their obligations,” he said.

Lokpobiri argued that granting extensions to non-performing licence holders only encourages waste. He maintained that the government would rather withdraw the assets and hand them to investors ready to deliver results.

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) had earlier confirmed that over 40 Petroleum Prospecting Licences issued in 2022 lapsed in June 2025. Although the Petroleum Industry Act allows for extensions of up to five years, approvals depend on evidence of exploration activity and fulfillment of financial commitments.

Energy experts believe the minister’s position signals a firm approach to idle licences. Professor Emeritus Wumi Iledare observed that renewals are unlikely where no real progress has been made.

Lokpobiri emphasized that Nigeria cannot afford dormant fields at a time when both local refineries and foreign buyers need more crude supply. He warned that the era of speculators holding licences as souvenirs is over, saying, “We must change our approach if we want to grow production.”