By SAMI TUNJI

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission has disclosed that its competitive reform agenda in the oil and gas sector has unlocked $18.2bn worth of Field Development Plans for 2025, a milestone that underlines renewed investor confidence in the country’s upstream industry.

The Chief Executive of the Commission, Gbenga Komolafe, made the disclosure on Tuesday at the Africa Oil Week in Accra, Ghana, where he delivered a presentation titled Nigeria’s Competitive Reform Agenda for Unlocking Potentials in Upstream Oil & Gas.

A press statement on Tuesday by the Head, Media and Strategic Communications at NUPRC, Eniola Akinkuotu, noted that Komolafe disclosed that the 28 Field Development Plans approved this year alone will unlock 1.4 billion barrels of oil and 5.4 trillion cubic feet of gas.

He explained that these plans would also add an expected 591,000 barrels of oil per day and 2.1 billion standard cubic feet of gas per day, boosting Nigeria’s push to achieve over three million barrels per day crude oil production capacity.

“The Chief Executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, Gbenga Komolafe, has highlighted how the country’s competitive reform agenda has delivered 28 Field Development Plans with $18.2bn worth of investment commitments, which underscores the attractiveness of the upstream sector.

“These commitments are also expected to unlock 1.4 billion barrels of oil and 5.4 TCF of gas, adding an expected 591,000 barrels of oil per day and 2.1 BSCFD of gas, boosting the country’s aspiration to deliver over 3 million barrels per day crude oil production,” the statement read.

Komolafe tied the developments to President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope agenda, which he said has driven a wave of reforms in the sector.

He noted that the Petroleum Industry Act of 2021 provided the framework for governance, fiscal clarity, and institutional realignment, which the NUPRC has vigorously pursued.

He added that the Commission, which emerged under the new regime, has demonstrated its role as a forward-thinking regulator by rolling out 24 transformative regulations in less than four years, 19 of which have already been gazetted.

He also revealed that a comprehensive Regulatory Action Plan had been introduced to remove bottlenecks, dismantle entry barriers, and ensure transparent licensing processes.

The Commission chief said the reforms were already yielding results, citing the $5bn Final Investment Decision on the Bonga North deep offshore development and the $500m Ubeta Gas Project, as well as anticipated FIDs in projects such as HI NAG Development, Ima Gas, Owowo Deep Offshore, and Preowei Fields.

He further disclosed that President Tinubu had approved five major acquisition deals worth over $5bn, opening new opportunities for ambitious indigenous players.

On licensing rounds, Komolafe explained that transparency and competitiveness had been central to recent awards.

He said the 57 Petroleum Prospecting Licence awards in 2022, the 2022 Mini-Bid Round, and the 2024 Licensing Round all recorded exceptional investor interest, with 27 out of 31 blocks offered in 2024 successfully taken up.

He stressed that the optimisation of signature bonus requirements and removal of barriers to entry were deliberate measures to widen accessibility.

Komolafe also pointed to a rise in rig counts, which climbed from just eight in 2021 to 43 as of September 2025, as proof of investor confidence.

According to him, these achievements affirm that Nigeria is entering a new era of clarity, competitiveness, and confidence.

“In 2025 alone, the Commission has approved 28 new Field Development Plans, unlocking 1.4 billion barrels of oil and 5.4 TCF of gas, adding an expected 591,000 barrels of oil per day and 2.1 BSCFD of gas.

“These FDPs, with $18.2bn in CAPEX commitments, underscore Nigeria’s transformation into one of the most dynamic and attractive upstream investment frontiers in the world,” Komolafe was quoted as saying.

Earlier this month, The PUNCH reported that Nigeria made significant strides in reducing crude oil losses, with figures from the NUPRC revealing a 50.2 per cent reduction in crude oil losses during the first seven months of 2025.

The commission noted that between January and July 2025, the country lost 2.04 million barrels of crude oil, averaging 9,600 barrels per day, which is the lowest level since 2009 when losses were recorded at 8,500 barrels per day.

This marked an improvement compared to the 4.1 million barrels lost in 2024, which had an average daily loss of 11,300 barrels.

The figures also highlighted a significant reduction from the record losses of 37.6 million barrels in 2021, when the country lost an average of 102,900 barrels per day.(PUNCH)