The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has urged oil and gas operators to intensify exploration activities in Nigeria’s largely untapped sedimentary basins to unlock commercially viable discoveries and boost the country’s crude oil production.
The Commission said achieving Nigeria’s target of producing three million barrels of oil per day by 2030 would depend largely on increased exploration, reserves growth and the development of new oil and gas resources.
The Commission Chief Executive, Mrs Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, gave the charge on Monday in her goodwill message at the opening ceremony of the 44th Annual International Conference and Exhibition of the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE) in Lagos.
Eyesan, who was represented by the Executive Commissioner, Development and Production, Engr. Enorense Amadasu, spoke on the conference theme, “Unlocking More Barrels: Driving Reserves Growth through Exploration, Local Capabilities, and Adaptive Technology.”
She called for renewed industry commitment to exploration, technological innovation and reserves growth, stressing the need to expand Nigeria’s exploration footprint to support long-term production growth.
The NUPRC chief identified the 2026 Licensing Round as a major opportunity to attract fresh investments and stimulate exploration activities across the country.
According to her, the Commission is deliberately keeping Nigeria’s acreage open to credible investors, particularly in frontier and underexplored terrains, to encourage new discoveries and expand the country’s hydrocarbon reserves.
She also challenged operators to deploy advanced technologies, including artificial intelligence, seismic data reprocessing and data analytics, alongside near-field exploration, to improve subsurface understanding, identify overlooked prospects and maximise recovery from mature fields.
Eyesan reaffirmed the Commission’s commitment to supporting professional development and knowledge transfer through its partnership with NAPE, particularly in mentoring programmes, student chapters and technical engagements.
She further noted that fiscal incentives introduced for deep offshore and gas projects provide an enabling environment for technically viable exploration opportunities to translate into bankable investment decisions.
The NUPRC chief maintained that increased exploration, supported by technological innovation, local capabilities and an investor-friendly regulatory framework, would be critical to unlocking Nigeria’s hydrocarbon potential and achieving its production ambitions.
