The Federal Government on Tuesday, July 21, 2026, announced that 13 unclaimed oil blocks from Nigeria’s 2025 oil and gas licensing round would be returned to the licensing basket after failing to attract investor bids, according to the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).

The commission’s Chief Executive, Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, disclosed the development at the 2025 Commercial Bid Conference in Abuja, where she said only 37 of the 50 oil and gas blocks offered during the exercise received interest from prospective investors.

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“At the end of the exercise, we had 50 blocks on offer, but we only had representation for 37 of those 50 blocks. Thirteen of those blocks will be returning back to the basket,” Eyesan said.

The development means the affected assets will remain available for future licensing opportunities as the government continues efforts to attract investment into Nigeria’s upstream petroleum sector.

Eyesan said the licensing exercise recorded significant investor participation, with 143 companies submitting about 200 bids for the available assets.

“We have a total of 143 companies showing interest for 200 bids. That, for us, was remarkable, and I must say thank you,” she said.

She added that the level of interest reflected improving confidence in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, noting that almost 300 companies initially indicated interest before the prequalification process reduced the number of eligible participants.

“From the almost 300 interests that we got, we moved to the pre-qualification stage, and that number was pruned down to 196,” Eyesan explained.

The 2025 licensing round was launched on November 11, 2025, under the framework of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021, with 50 petroleum assets made available across seven sedimentary basins.

The blocks included assets in the Niger Delta onshore area, shallow waters, deep offshore locations, the Benin Basin, Anambra Basin, Chad Basin and Benue Trough.

The bidding process involved technical and commercial assessments, with successful applicants evaluated based on factors such as signature bonus commitments, proposed work programmes and performance security rather than financial offers alone.

The approach was designed to ensure that successful investors have the technical capability, financial capacity and operational strength required to develop the country’s petroleum resources.

Nigeria has continued to seek increased investment in exploration and production as the government pushes reforms aimed at improving efficiency, transparency and competitiveness in the oil and gas sector.

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The return of the 13 unclaimed oil blocks highlights the mixed outcome of the licensing round, with strong participation from investors in some areas while other assets failed to attract commercial interest.