By Abiodun Folarin
WorldStage— The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), has called on international investors to take advantage of Nigeria’s improving investment climate and participate in the 2026 oil and gas licensing round, featuring 40 blocks.
The Commission disclosed that the portal for the licensing round would officially open on November 20, 2026, expressing confidence that the country’s competitive fiscal terms, improved security and investment incentives would attract significant investor interest.
The Commission Chief Executive, Mrs. Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, made the appeal on Monday during a roundtable discussion titled, ‘Energy Sovereignty in an Interconnected World: Aligning National Priorities, Markets and Global Security’, at the 2026 ADIPEC Exhibition and Conference in Abu Dhabi.
“We are expecting investors to turn to Nigeria. We are going in for another licensing round and we will be launching our bid portal on November 20. We expect to see interested investors because the environment is a lot more competitive,” she said.
According to her, Nigeria has established an attractive fiscal framework, introduced incentives and strengthened security in the operating environment to reduce investment risks and improve the competitiveness of its oil and gas sector.
Eyesan attributed the improvement in the country’s investment climate to the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021 and executive orders signed by President Bola Tinubu, noting that the reforms had helped reposition Nigeria as an attractive destination for oil and gas investments.
She said the NUPRC had conducted at least four successful licensing rounds between 2021 and 2026, marking a departure from the pre-PIA era when licensing rounds were less frequent.
The NUPRC chief also highlighted Nigeria’s vast gas potential, estimated at 215 trillion cubic feet (TCF), against current daily production of approximately seven billion cubic feet (7bcf), describing the gap as a significant investment opportunity.
She said ongoing and planned gas infrastructure projects would unlock additional supply for domestic consumption, regional markets and international exports.
“The stars are already aligned. For gas infrastructure, we just completed very major infrastructure projects that will unlock gas supply in the country and the sub-region,” Eyesan said.
She identified the proposed Nigeria-Morocco Atlantic Gas Pipeline and the Trans-Sahara Gas Pipeline as strategic projects that could expand Nigeria’s access to international markets, including Europe, while meeting growing regional energy demand.
Eyesan said Nigeria was positioning itself to become a major supplier in the global gas market rather than limiting its ambition to meeting domestic energy needs.
She, however, acknowledged that competition for global oil and gas investments had intensified as more countries discover petroleum resources and seek capital to develop their assets.
According to her, Nigeria has responded by making regulatory and fiscal adjustments to address investors’ concerns about execution risks, operating costs, project delays and policy uncertainty.
“We understand that investors will prize execution risk, cost, delays and also uncertainty. And so what we have done in Nigeria is to ensure that we guard against these risks and then attract the investment required to enable us unlock the huge resources we sit on,” she said.
The 2026 licensing round, which offers 40 oil and gas blocks, is expected to provide fresh opportunities for exploration and development while supporting Nigeria’s efforts to increase production, attract capital and maximise its petroleum resources.
