FG Plans to Auction Seven Deep Offshore Oil Blocks in November

• The Nigerian government has stated its plans to auction about seven deep-sea oil blocks
• The Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission said this is the first time Nigeria is doing so in 15 years
• The Chief Executive of NUPRC stated that the oil fields are located in Lagos and not in the Niger Delta

According to the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, the Nigerian government plans to auction deep offshore oil and gas licences for the first time in 15 years.

The commission's chief executive, Gbenga Komolafe, said the country will launch a bidding round for seven deep-water blocks this November.

Nigeria issues licenses first time in 15 years

Timipre Sylva, Nigeria's minister of state for petroleum, said that the Nigerian government is making serious plans to reduce oil theft in the country.

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Nigeria last issued licenses and permits for oil blocks between 2003 and 2007, mainly to open up the ocean floor to oil and gas exploration.

ThisDay report quoted Komolafe as saying the available blocks are at depths of between 1,200 meters, about 3,936 feet and 3,100 metres.

The blocks are located off the city of Lagos instead of the coast of the Niger Delta, further to the east, where Nigeria gets most of its oil.

Nigeria loses highest oil-producing status

The decision to auction the oil fields comes months after the regulatory body, NUPRC, completed the disposal of 57 marginal fields after a long process to shore up Nigeria's oil production efforts.

The country's oil output fell to an all-time low of 1.2 million barrels daily in September and has almost halved since the first quarter of 2020.

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Oil vandals and pipeline thieves have been blamed for the cut in oil production by the Nigerian government and the decision to cut down oil wells.

Due to oil theft, Nigeria recently lost its highest oil-producing status in Africa to Angola and two other African countries.

Nigeria loses top spot again as list of Africa’s leading oil producers for June is revealed by OPEC

Recall that Legit.ng reported that for the second month in a row, Nigeria has lost its position as Africa's largest oil producer.

According to the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)'s monthly oil market report for June, Angola recorded oil production of 1.175 million barrels per day compared to Nigeria's 1.024 million barrels per day.

However, OPEC praised Nigeria in the report, noting a 134,000 barrels per barrel (bpd) increase in production compared to 1.024 million direct communication in May when Nigeria lost its status as Africa’s top oil producer.

Source: Legit.ng