President Muhammadu Buhari, on Monday, April 17, said that the federal government, under his administration, generated over N203 billion from the sale of petroleum prospecting licenses to 161 firms in its last marginal fields bid round.
Buhari made this known while speaking at the opening ceremony of the sixth edition of the Nigeria International Energy Summit at the state house.
The president said that, “We implemented marginal oilfields bid round and saw to the conclusion of the process which resulted in the award of Petroleum Prospecting Licenses (PPLs) to 161 successful firms.
“The federal government raked in over N203 billion from the process.”
Marginal fields are smaller oil wells situated onshore or in shallow water bodies and are usually developed by local companies.
In June 2022, 10 months after President Buhari signed the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), the newly-formed Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) said that more than two-thirds of the licensees had fully paid for their permits.
NUPRC issued the licences despite a court ruling in May 2022, restraining the government from issuing the licences due to a pending legal battle with local chiefs of the oil-rich south-south.
Buhari also said that his administration created a conducive environment for businesses to thrive.
He said that, “My administration took the issue of ease of doing business very serious and we created the conducive environment for businesses to thrive.
“You don’t have to take my word for it but many of the biggest businesses that came on stream in the lifetime of my administration are backing up this fact.
“The $5 billion NLNG Train 7 project is one of such.
“It is one of the most ambitious construction projects in Nigeria.
“Upon completion, the Nigeria LNG Train 7 project will increase the NLNG terminal production capacity by 35 percent from the current 22 metric tons per annum to 30 metric tons per annum,” he added.
According to the president, signing the petroleum industry bill into law remains his “biggest achievement in the energy sector.”
He noted that, “For decades, we were told that because of the various vested interest, it would be near impossible to pass the bill, but we made it happen.
“We moved swiftly into action, scrapped the existing agencies and replaced them with the new regulators, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA),” Buhari added.
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