FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO WITHDRAWS LICENSE OF FIRMS WITH DORMANT OIL FIELDS

Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Oil has declared an end to the era where oil companies acquire field licenses and leave them dormant.

The minister issued the warning at the ongoing 2025 Nigeria Oil and Gas Energy Week in Abuja, as part of a renewed push to meet its OPEC production quota and 2025 budgetary targets. The government warned that it will no longer tolerate operators lacking the technical and financial capacity to develop oil fields, stressing that such licences will be withdrawn.

He said the government is determined to maximize oil production by ensuring that only serious investors retain access to Nigeria’s hydrocarbon resources.

Also speaking, Mr. Ekperikpe Ekpo the Minister of State Petroleum Resources, Gas, said Nigeria had proven gas reserves of over 200 trillion cubic feet, yet value would only be created when resources were developed and utilized.

Engr. Bashir Bayo Ojulari, Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Limited, disclosed that the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano AKK Gas Pipeline has successfully crossed the River Niger, boosting the hope of the project’s completion by the end of this year.

Engr. Ojulari, who described the development as a significant milestone, said the feat was achieved through effective and innovative contract reengineering and industry collaboration.

Reported by Nneamaka Okafor