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NUPRC dismisses oil block licensing irregularity claims, assures transparency

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NUPRC defends oil block licensing

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has strongly denied allegations of irregularities in the 2024 oil block licensing round, asserting the process was transparent and strictly adhered to legal guidelines, while also refuting claims of mass license expirations

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The NUPRC Oil Block licensing round of 2024 has been vigorously defended by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), which has dismissed all allegations of irregularities.

Also read: Oil crash hits Nigeria’s budget

The commission insists that the entire process was conducted in strict adherence to existing laws and guidelines, refuting reports claiming violations of oil licensing procedures and improper allocation of blocks.

In a statement issued on Thursday, NUPRC addressed reports that alleged the allocation of blocks to companies with questionable eligibility.

The Commission Chief Executive, Gbenga Komolafe, clarified that the licensing round was executed in full compliance with the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) and NUPRC’s own licensing frameworks.

Komolafe described the bidding process as transparent, competitive, and technologically driven. He directly addressed claims suggesting that a company registered just days before bidding was awarded oil blocks, by clarifying that the guidelines do not restrict participation based on the age of a company.

Instead, eligibility is determined through a comprehensive evaluation of technical competence, financial capacity, and legal standing.

The NUPRC boss explained that the technical and financial qualifications of a bidder are judged not by when a company was registered, but by the capacity and track record of its promoters or parent firms.

“This approach allows newly formed Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs), when backed by credible and experienced industry players, to compete effectively and fairly,” Komolafe stated.

He further detailed that the 2024 Licensing Round involved multiple stages, including prequalification, technical evaluation, and commercial bid evaluation.

Applicants were required to demonstrate financial capability, technical expertise, and legal compliance by submitting detailed documentation, such as incorporation papers, tax clearances, and proof of operational experience.

“The pre-qualification window was open with no restrictions on company age,” Komolafe highlighted. “The commercial bidding phase was carried out digitally using encrypted technology to ensure the integrity and confidentiality of the data.

The results were announced transparently and publicly, featuring live televised sessions that were observed by stakeholders, including the Nigerian Extractive Industry Initiative (NEITI) and relevant government ministries.”

He added that the commercial bid evaluation was conducted using a transparent, digital, and point-based assessment system, which included Signature Bonus, Proposed Work Programme Financial Commitments, and Work Performance Security.

Meanwhile, the Commission also debunked reports claiming that 40 oil block licenses would expire on June 27, 2025. It described the report, based on data misinterpreted from the NUPRC website, as misleading and capable of creating unnecessary alarm within the industry.

NUPRC clarified that the 40 Petroleum Prospecting Licences (PPLs) referenced are at different stages of exploration and development. Many operators have already applied to convert their PPLs to Petroleum Mining Leases (PMLs) as provided by the PIA, and these applications are currently undergoing regulatory review.

It further explained that several of the licensees have met the minimum work programme requirements under Section 78 of the PIA, making them eligible for extensions, stressing that production start-up is not the only benchmark for compliance.

NUPRC urged media platforms to ensure factual and contextual reporting, in line with regulatory statutes. It reiterated its commitment to a transparent and inclusive regulatory regime that protects public interest and supports the sustainable development of Nigeria’s oil and gas resources.

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Heirs Life Names Pastor Jerry Eze Independent Non-Executive Director

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Heirs

Heirs Life appoints Jerry Eze as an Independent Non-Executive Director to strengthen financial inclusion, consumer trust and insurance adoption (more…)

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Shoreline Group secures US$200 million Afreximbank Facility

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Shoreline Group today announced that African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has approved a US$200 million facility in favour of Shoreline Power Company Limited and co-borrowers including Arkad S.p.A., Shoreline’s majority-owned engineering and construction platform.
Approved in June 2026, the facility was arranged and provided by Afreximbank as sole mandated lead arranger and lender. It provides bonding and working-capital capacity for Arkad’s delivery of the Hassi Bir Rekaiz project and supports Shoreline and its affiliates in developing further pipeline and infrastructure
projects in Nigeria and other permitted jurisdictions.
“This is a defining transaction for Shoreline and Arkad. We built Arkad as an African- sponsored engineering platform capable of competing at the highest level, and it is now delivering against a billion-dollar energy contract. Afreximbank’s US$200 million commitment gives the platform the financial strength to match its engineering capability and pursue further major infrastructure mandates. It demonstrates that African enterprises can assemble the capital, capability and partnerships required to compete for infrastructure at international scale.”
Hassi Bir Rekaiz Phase 2a Arkad holds 44 per cent of the approximately US$1 billion EPCCS-1 contract awarded by Groupement
Hassi Bir Rekaiz (GHBR) to an unincorporated consortium led by Egypt’s Petrojet, which holds 56 percent. EPCCS-1 covers engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning and start-up for the Phase 2a central processing facility and related infrastructure at the Hassi Bir Rekaiz field in Algeria’s Berkine
Basin.
GHBR is the joint operating entity for the licence, held by Sonatrach with 51 per cent and Thailand’s PTTEP with 49 per cent. The project includes a new crude oil processing facility with capacity of 31,500 barrels per day, facilities for associated gas and produced-water treatment, approximately 217 kilometres
of pipelines and the brownfield modifications required to integrate existing Phase 1 infrastructure.
The facilities are designed to support later expansion to 63,000 barrels per day under Phase 2b.
“This financing addresses the instruments that determine whether an EPC contractor can execute at scale: performance guarantees, advance payment guarantees and working capital through the project cycle. Hassi Bir Rekaiz is a demanding scope, combining a new central processing facility, associated treatment systems, pipelines and brownfield integration. With Petrojet, and with the support of Shoreline and Afreximbank, Arkad is focused on disciplined delivery against the project’s safety, quality and schedule requirements.”
The transaction was structured under Afreximbank’s Engineering, Procurement and Construction Initiative, which supports African engineering and construction firms with the financial instruments required to compete for and execute large infrastructure contracts. Afreximbank also supported the Arkad-Petrojet partnership through its EPC twinning work at the Intra-African Trade Fair held in Algiers
in 2025.
According to Afreximbank, the transaction is its first support for a Sub-Saharan African contractor undertaking a major infrastructure project in North Africa. For Shoreline, it demonstrates a practical model for combining African ownership and capital with established international engineering andindustrial capability.

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BUSINESSWOMAN AISHA ACHIMUGU SPEAKS OUT, CALLS FOR PROTECTION OF LIFE AND RESPECT FOR RULE OF LAW

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Nigerian businesswoman and investor Aisha Achimugu has made a public appeal for the protection of her life, her family, and her business interests while alleging a sustained campaign of intimidation, media trial, and asset seizures.

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Achimugu, in a statement Tuesday, said she is facing actions that she described as an affront to the rule of law and natural justice.
She then called for the respect for court orders and for an end to what she termed misleading media coverage about her person and companies.
According to Achimugu, the widow of the late Engr. Sulaiman Achimugu, former Managing Director of the Pipelines and Product Marketing Company, PPMC, she has over the last three decades built businesses in the oil and gas and other sectors, and runs the SAM Empowerment Foundation, SEF, which she said has implemented health, education, and community projects across Nigeria.
The businesswoman, however, alleged that since 2023 she has been the subject of investigations and actions by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
Narrating her ordeals, Achimugu noted that in 2023, the EFCC’s Port Harcourt zonal office froze her personal accounts, her children’s accounts, and company accounts linked to the Felak Group, based on an interim forfeiture order.
She said this was connected to a mistaken association with MBA Forex and Capital Investment.
Achimugu stated that in January 2024 she honoured an EFCC invitation with her counsel, clarified her company’s single transaction with MBA Forex, and refunded N58 million by bank draft to the EFCC recovery account.
In March 2025, the businesswoman said she received WhatsApp messages inviting her to the EFCC Port Harcourt office. Her lawyer responded in writing, proposing dates in April 2025. Despite this, she alleged a media campaign began on March 10, 2025 linking her to wrongdoing.
On March 28, 2025, the same day her company, Oceangate Oil & Gas Limited, submitted proof of $20 million payment to NUPRC for oil blocks PPL 302-DO and PPL 3007, subsequently, she claimed the EFCC declared her a “Wanted Person” for “conspiracy and money laundering.” She also alleged that EFCC operatives searched her home that day.
In April 2025, Achimugu said she filed a fundamental rights suit at the Federal High Court, Abuja. But upon returning to Nigeria on April 28, 2025 from a foreign trip, she alleged she was taken into EFCC custody, granted bail by a judge, but released five days later. She also said her international passport was collected.
She alleged further asset actions, including freezing of bank accounts, and the seizure of vehicles from her home in January 2026. She said matters relating to these actions are the subject of ongoing litigation and appeals.
Achimugu also alleged that her United States visa was revoked in April 2025, and that she encountered issues with visa processing related to her Grenadian citizenship, which she linked to media reports citing the EFCC’s declaration.
Achimugu stated that she has invested nearly $90 million in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector in the last five years and has attracted over $100 million in investments into the economy while directly employs close to 200 Nigerians.
However, she said the actions of the anti-graft agency have affected her business operations, international partnerships, and family, including her elderly parents and young children.
Achimugu then called on the National Assembly, the Judiciary, security services, and local and international human rights organizations to examine her case.
She also asked for the protection of her life and properties, respect for court orders, and an end to what she described as a “media trial”.
“I believe that justice delayed is justice denied, and I am not afraid to face the law provided due process is followed. My lawyers are pursuing all legal remedies locally and internationally,” she said.
Achimugu added that she remains committed to Nigeria and to supporting private sector growth.

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