THE Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) says the enforcement of Section 94 of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), which compels operators to either commence work or relinquish the licence, a provision commonly referred to as drill or drop, has come into play in the ongoing licensing rounds.

The enforcement of the provision, the commission’s Chief Executive, Mrs. Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, said, has attracted more serious investors in the ongoing 2025 licensing rounds with the target of increasing Nigeria’s petroleum reserves.

She disclosed this when she received the management of the Petroleum Directorate of Sierra-Leone at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja.

The NUPRC boss added, “The PIA also opened the opportunities for small and big players because there is now a drill or drop provision in the Act. So, we have cured the problem of uncertainties.

“In the past, we had operators who had 20-year licenses and sat on these blocks and did absolutely nothing.

“Now, we have moved from that era to drill or drop. So now, we have more assets in the basket, which has given us the impetus to go for – if possible – annual bid rounds.”

According to Eyesan, the era of companies holding on to their prospecting licences without developing their assets is officially over.

She also expressed delight over the number of applicants in the 2025 licensing round.

Eyesan said the figure was impressive, given that the licensing round guideline stipulates that no company – either as a single firm or as part of a consortium – can bid for more than two out of the 50 oil blocks on offer.

She stated, “For the 2025 licensing round, we have 50 oil blocks on offer. And the outcome of the pre-qualification submission was a demonstration that there is indeed a very good appetite for the bid round.”

Eyesan said to ensure total transparency in the licensing round, the NUPRC added an extra layer of validation by partnering with a reputable audit firm to interrogate the system and validate that the system is full proof.

“The result of that exercise will be made public just to boost investor confidence,” she stated.

Director-General, of the Petroleum Directorate of Sierra-Leone, Mr. Foday Mansaray, said the aim of the meeting was to understand Nigeria’s petroleum sector and use the lessons to improve his country’s own hydrocarbon sector.

Mansaray called for a stronger and more sustainable energy collaboration between Sierra Leone and Nigeria.

“We are here to collaborate with the NUPRC at a bilateral level and learn from Nigeria, our big brothers in the industry. We are a small country of just 8 million people but very ambitious,” he stated while seeking the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding.

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