The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has completed the pre-qualification stage for its 2025 Licensing Round, notifying successful applicants on March 16, 2026.

Pre-qualified companies can now access lease data to prepare for technical and commercial bid submissions. Applicants must lease data from approved sources and provide proof of payment before submitting their bids.

The round offers 50 oil blocks, including 15 onshore, 19 shallow water, 15 frontier, and one deepwater block, as part of efforts to develop Nigeria’s petroleum sector under the Petroleum Industry Act 2021.

NUPRC expects the process to attract $10 billion in investments and boost oil output by up to 2 billion barrels over the next decade, with production potentially reaching 400,000 barrels per day when the blocks are fully operational. Signature bonuses for bidders range from $3 million to $7 million to encourage participation.

The technical and commercial bidding stage begins immediately, with the process scheduled to conclude by July 2026.