The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission has said that the 220 open oil blocks scattered in various onshore and offshore basins across the country would be handed to concessionaires after periodic bid rounds and conditions are met.

The PUNCH had on Monday reported that Nigeria currently has 220 open oil blocks scattered across its onshore and offshore basins, according to data from the NUPRC. The oil blocks remain dormant despite Nigeria’s growing debt burden and crude shortages affecting local refineries.

The NUPRC data showed that the deep offshore terrain accounts for the highest number of unlicensed blocks at 59, highlighting the country’s underexploited energy wealth in its most technically advanced but capital-intensive region.

The Benue Trough follows with 41 open blocks, while the Chad Basin hosts 40. In the Sokoto Basin, there are 28 blocks yet to be awarded, and the Bida Basin has 16. It was disclosed that even in more mature areas, idle blocks persist.

The offshore Niger Delta, often considered the backbone of Nigeria’s oil production history, still holds seven open blocks. The Anambra Basin has 13 open blocks, while eight each remain unlicensed in the Benin Basin and the onshore Niger Delta.

In a statement on Wednesday, the NUPRC said the unlicensed 220 oil blocks were not abandoned but were awaiting concessions in line with Section 7(t) of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021, which empowers it to conduct periodic licensing rounds and award oil blocks to successful bidders.

The commission said the open blocks, 59 of which are in the offshore deep water, would be handed over to investors after a bid round. Recall that the commission, in December 2024, announced a licensing bid round for 2025, but that has yet to commence.

“The commission clarified that 220 oil blocks were not abandoned but were simply awaiting concessions in line with Section 7(t) of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021, which empowers the commission to conduct periodic licensing rounds and grant Petroleum Prospecting Licence and Petroleum Mining Leases to prospective investors.

“The commission further stated that the 220 oil blocks would be handed to concessionaires after periodic bid rounds and conditions had been met,” the NUPRC said.

In its statement, the commission said it released the concession status of 243 oil blocks, saying this was done in the spirit of transparency as envisaged by the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021. It was observed that some oil licences expired in June 2025, but the commission has yet to give further updates on the current status of the licences.

According to a publication by the NUPRC, 24 blocks were recently awarded from the 2022/2023 deepwater mini bid round and the 2024 licensing round. On the strength of the recorded successes in exploration, development, and production, the commission said it was evident that the Nigerian deepwater terrain is endowed with enormous hydrocarbon resources.

However, it was stated that the deep offshore terrain presents complexity in accessibility, technology, investment, and facility deployment, which potentially explains its status as largely underexplored and underdeveloped.

“Empirical data indicates that there are about 59 open block opportunities in deep offshore Nigeria, which accounts for about 27 per cent of total open blocks in Nigeria and 80 per cent of open blocks in the prolific Niger Delta and its offshore terrains,” it was stated.

As of January 1, 2025, the deepwater terrain reportedly contributed approximately 19 per cent and 12 per cent of oil and gas reserves in Nigeria, respectively. Industry analysts said these figures point to a serious mismatch between Nigeria’s potential and its actual production performance, its unlocked wealth and the debt profile.

As a country with high dependence on oil revenues, unlicensed and undeveloped oil blocks impact incomes, causing the country to resort to borrowing. It was learnt that the government’s debt stock hit over N149tn in Q1 2025, and the country continues to depend heavily on imports to meet refined petroleum needs, even as its own refineries suffer from chronic crude shortages.