NIGERIA · ENERGY

Nigeria’s oil regulator says the bid portal for 40 oil and gas blocks opens on Friday 20 November. The announcement gave no bid deadline or fees.

Nigeria will open the online bid portal for its 2026 oil licensing round on Friday 20 November, its upstream regulator has said. Forty oil and gas blocks are on offer, and foreign investors are eligible to bid.

Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, chief executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), gave the date on Monday 2 November. For US readers, it is the first firm date for bidding in a round that opened on 6 October.

What the Regulator Announced

Eyesan spoke at ADIPEC, the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference, a big yearly oil industry gathering. At a roundtable there she said the bid portal would open on 20 November.

The session was titled Energy Sovereignty in an Interconnected World. A statement from the regulator’s media chief, Eniola Akinkuotu, carried her remarks to the Nigerian press.

Eyesan told investors that Nigeria offers a stable climate despite global energy tensions. She also described a very attractive fiscal framework, meaning the tax and royalty rules for oil companies.

An aerial view of Abuja’s Central Business District, Nigeria’s capital, in an April 2024 photo. It does not show the regulator or any oil block. Photo: Shadygaz / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

What Is on Offer in the Round

The round offers 40 blocks across land, shallow water and deep water. The block names, basins and split by terrain could not be confirmed from the regulator’s public statements.

The round opened on Tuesday 6 October in Abuja, after President Bola Tinubu approved it. The regulator said then that block details and qualification rules would follow on its website and portal in the coming days.

How Bidding Is Meant to Work

Every bidder must disclose its beneficial owners. The regulator also says it will publish its scoring method and fuller results.

Nigerian and international investors are both eligible to bid. The promised qualification rules could not be confirmed as published.

Why the Nigeria Oil Bid Portal Date Matters

Until the portal opens, companies cannot file bids, so 20 November starts the formal race for the 40 blocks. No bid deadline or award date has been announced in the statements that could be confirmed.

Eyesan said investors weigh execution risk, cost, delays and uncertainty, and that Nigeria has taken steps to lower them. She credited the Petroleum Industry Act of 2021, the law that reformed the sector, and executive orders signed by Tinubu.

She also stressed gas, with about 215 trillion cubic feet of reserves but output of only about 7 billion cubic feet daily. At that pace, the reserves equal more than 80 years of output.

She named two proposed gas pipelines, the Nigeria-Morocco Atlantic Gas Pipeline and the Trans-Sahara Gas Pipeline. Both are still on the drawing board and would carry gas towards Europe and regional markets.

Earlier Rio Times reports include Nigeria Offers 40 Oil Blocks in New Licensing Round and Nigeria Natural Resources Explained 2026. See also Nigerian Oil Near US$115 on Hormuz Attacks and the Nigeria hub.

What It Means for US Readers

Both Nigerian and international investors are eligible to bid, so US oil companies can take part once the portal opens. Fees, deadlines and fiscal terms matter most to them, and none has been confirmed.

The US State Department tells Americans to reconsider travel to Nigeria, a Level 3 advisory. It lists Bayelsa, Delta and Rivers, except Port Harcourt, among its Do Not Travel states, which include oil-producing areas.

What Is Not Known

The names of the 40 blocks, the bid deadline, the fees and the fiscal terms could not be confirmed. The regulator’s own news page could not be opened, so the date rests on its statement as carried by several Nigerian outlets.

The date is an announcement made at a conference, not a published notice. Statements also differ on how many licensing rounds the regulator has held since 2021.

What Comes Next

The next step is Friday 20 November, when the portal is due to open. That does not mean awards are close, since no bid deadline has been announced.

Frequently Asked Questions

When does Nigeria’s oil bid portal open?

Nigeria’s upstream regulator says the portal for its 2026 licensing round opens on Friday 20 November. The date was announced on Monday 2 November.

How many oil and gas blocks are on offer?

The round offers 40 blocks on land, in shallow water and in deep water. The block list and the split by terrain could not be confirmed.

Can US companies bid in Nigeria’s licensing round?

Nigerian and international investors are both eligible, so US companies can take part. Every bidder must disclose its beneficial owners, the real people behind the company.

Is it safe for Americans to travel to Nigeria?

The US State Department rates Nigeria Level 3, Reconsider Travel, and lists several states as Do Not Travel. Check the current advisory before any trip.

Sources: Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, licensing round announcements; ADIPEC, Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference; US State Department, Nigeria travel advisory (all accessed 3 November 2026).