The Federal Government has lowered the signature bonus for the 2025 petroleum licensing round to between $3 million and $7 million. A signature bonus is a one-time payment that oil companies make when signing an agreement for the award of an exploration or production licence or lease. The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission announced the new range in a statement, warning that any bidder who submits an offer outside the approved amounts will be disqualified.
According to the commission, all bidders are expected to propose a signature bonus within “a range of $3 million and $7 million as approved by the minister of petroleum for the reduction of entry barriers.” The NUPRC added that all bids will be evaluated using a score-based system that considers different criteria aimed at ensuring transparency and competitiveness.
The commission listed the signature bonus, as long as it falls within the set limit, and the proposed work programme as key factors in the assessment. It also stated that the unit cost per barrel linked to the work programme would be reviewed during the evaluation. Other parameters include professionalism, human and technical capacity, percentage of bank guarantee provided, balance sheet strength, turnover, green story and decarbonisation efforts, as well as the corporate governance structure of each bidder.
On December 1, the NUPRC launched the 2025 Licensing Round and introduced a digital bid portal as part of ongoing efforts to boost investment and expand activity in the upstream sector. With presidential approval, the commission has placed 50 oil and gas blocks on offer across various terrains, including onshore, shallow water, frontier basins, and deepwater.
NUPRC Chief Executive Officer, Gbenga Komolafe, said the new licensing round is expected to draw about $10 billion in investments, add up to two billion barrels to national reserves within the next decade, and deliver about 400,000 barrels per day from fully developed assets. The commission also said the process will follow a two-stage procedure involving a qualification stage and a bidding stage.
