First Oil From 2020 Marginal Field Bid Underway – NUPRC

Some of 2020 marginal field bid round investors are on the stage of striking their first oil.

It would be recalled that the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) concluded the bid mid-last year.

Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Mr. Gbenga Komolafe, at the weekend confirmed to The Nation that the country was on the verge of increasing its oil and gas production with new production projects coming on stream.

Asked how far those awarded the Petroleum Prospective Licenses (PPL) had gone developing the fields, he confirmed that the commission had approved the Field Development Programmes (FDP) for some investors while others were on the waiting list.

“We are equally aware that some of the awardees, happily enough, are in the process of recording their first oil.

“So, that is a success and, as I speak in terms of status, some of them have already forwarded their (FDPs) Field Development Programmes and some of the FDPs have been approved,” he said.

According to him, the core focus of the NUPRC is how to increase the national oil and gas production.

Komolafe, an engineer, said the commission had been discussing with other investors to emulate the thriving ones to go beyond the award of PPL to production.

The CEO said: “We are equally engaging with the others to equally follow suit and bring these awards of the marginal fields into production.”

He added that the efforts were towards ensuring that the brown fields contribute into increased national oil production.

Komolafe noted that aside that, it is part of the commission’s efforts to enhance national production for the country’s robust oil reserve that is about 38billion barrels of oil.

Meanwhile, he said the commission has started the bid for seven deep offshore virgin blocks.

The process, according to him, is coming 15 years after the last one.

He vowed to ensure that the exercise, which has gone midway, was carried out competitively.

Komolafe was optimistic that the commission will round off the bid before May 29, 2023 – the end of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

His words: “So, we are very committed to ensure that the exercise is concluded in a transparent and competitive manner successfully.

“So, we are almost midway through with that exercise, which by the calendar we have put to the public, is supposed to round off in the life of this administration.”