The regulatory commission has already announced the requirement for joint venture (JV) arrangements between IOCs and indigenous companies
President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the amendment of the 2022/2023 deep offshore oil block mini-bid round.
The Nigerian Upstream Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) Chief Executive, Gbenga Komolafe, disclosed this in a statement on Saturday.
Mr Komolafe said the approval was in a bid to boost confidence in the transparency and continuity of the deep offshore oil block mini-bid round process.
He added that the move was to accommodate the concerns expressed by both local and international investors over the closeness of the schedule to the terminal date of the present administration in the country.
"Following the approval by President Buhari in his capacity as the Petroleum Resources Minister, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has revised the Deep Offshore Oil block Bid Round Schedule by extending the deadline for the submission of Technical/Commercial bids to 19 May 2023, as well as the timeline for concluding activities of contract negotiations and signing between 3 and 28 July 2023," he said.
According to him, the 2022/23 deep offshore oil block mini-bid round is progressing in accordance with the bid round schedule which has been published as part of the bid round guidelines.
"The outstanding activities for the conclusion of the exercise include the technical/commercial bid submission and the ministerial consent/contract negotiation and signing.
"The technical/commercial bid submission involves data access, purchase, evaluation, bid preparation and submission, bid evaluation and publication of results as well as commercial bid conference and announcement of winners," he said.
He, therefore, reiterated that the commission is fully committed to conducting the bid round in a manner that guarantees the achievement of the objectives of the exercise, noting that participation is both robust and beneficial to key stakeholders.
However, he said constant interrogation and oversight of the process revealed two concerns that the commission felt might impact the success of the exercise if not immediately addressed.
"The concerns are the plan to conclude the bid process before the transition to the new government and the need to guarantee the participation of qualified indigenous companies, working collaboratively with multinationals and the International Oil Companies (IOCs) to leverage technology, funding and expertise in the deep offshore," he added.
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He said the commission has already announced the requirement for joint venture (JV) arrangements between IOCs and indigenous companies and amended the guidelines accordingly.
This measure, he said not only addresses the second concern, but is also in consonance with, and supports the Nigerian content requirements of the bid round.
"It is also in accordance with Section 16(1)(a) of the Nigerian Constitution which provides that resources of the nation shall be harnessed in a manner that promotes national prosperity and an efficient, dynamic and self-sustaining economy.
"The extension of time is also to afford interested multinationals and IOCs enough time to enter into and conclude the necessary joint venture arrangements as well as allow for proper evaluation of relevant data by all bidders," he said.
