December 19, (THEWILL) – Sahara Deepwater Resources Limited, TotalEnergies Exploration & Production Nigeria, and 15 other oil and gas companies have emerged as winners in the 2024 bid round for Nigeria’s onshore and offshore oil blocks. The exercise was conducted by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission.
The results were announced during the 2024 Licensing Round Commercial Bid Conference held in Lagos on Wednesday.
It marked the first oil bid round conducted under the Petroleum Industry Act 2021, aimed at enhancing transparency and efficiency in Nigeria’s upstream oil and gas sector.
NUPRC Chief Executive, Gbenga Komolafe, described the bid process as the most transparent in the history of the country’s oil industry, emphasizing compliance with Section 73(1A) of the PIA.
Out of the 31 blocks initially offered—seven from the 2022/23 Mini Bid Round and 24 from the 2024 Licensing Round—bidders showed interest in 25 blocks, while six blocks failed to attract bids.
Announcing the results, Komolafe provided a breakdown of the winners as PPL 300-DO: Sifax and Royal Gate Consortium (no reserve bidder), PPL 302-DO**: Ocean Gate Engineering Oil and Gas Limited (no reserve bidder), PPL 303-DO**: MRS Oil and Gas Company Limited, with NNPC Limited as a reserve bidder, PPL 304-DO: Sifax & Royal Gate Consortium, with Homeland Integrated Offshore Services Limited as a reserve bidder, PPL 305-DO: Hakilat Oil and Gas Consortium Limited, with NNPC E&P Limited as a reserve bidder, PPL 306-DO: Biswal Oil and Gas Limited (no reserve bidder), PPL 269: Petroli Energy Marketing and Supply Limited and PPL 270 & PPL 271: Sahara Deepwater Resources Limited.
Others are PPL 300/301-CS Cluster: Panout Oil and Gas Limited, PPL 2000/2001: TotalEnergies Exploration and Production Nigeria Limited, with Star DeepWater Petroleum Limited as a reserve bidder, PPL 2002: Biswal Oil and Gas Limited, PPL 2003: First E&P Development Company Limited, PPL 2004: Dewayles International Limited, PPL 2005: Applefield Oil and Gas Limited, PPL 2006: First E&P Development Company Limited and PPL 2007: R28 Holdings Limited.
Key winners included Sifax & Royal Gate Consortium, Sahara Deepwater Resources, MRS Oil and Gas, and TotalEnergies E&P. Panout Oil & Gas and Biswal Oil and Gas also secured multiple blocks.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, which participated as a bidder, failed to secure any blocks, losing out to competitors like MRS Oil and Gas and others.
Komolafe highlighted the significance of the bid round in attracting investments to Nigeria’s oil and gas sector while boosting national revenue.
The allocation of these licenses is expected to drive exploration and production activities, contributing to Nigeria’s energy security and economic growth.
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