Economy
Nigeria Rakes N174.9bn from 2020 Marginal Field Bid Round
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Upstream Regulatory Petroleum Commission (NURPC) has disclosed that the 2020 marginal field bid round, which was concluded last year, has so far yielded about N174.944 billion, with owners of 30 fields having partially paid and two fields stalled by court cases.
The new commission further stated that 20 companies that won the bids had partially paid up, among those who won the 57 oilfields.
In May 2021, the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), which transmuted into NURPC with the enactment of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), concluded the 2020 marginal oilfield bid round, the first successful exercise since 2003, when 24 assets were put on offer.
The process which culminated in the presentation of letters to the bid winners in Abuja by the industry regulator, started in June 2020, with 57 marginal fields spanning land, swamp and offshore put up for lease by the federal government.
Marginal fields are smaller oil blocks typically developed by indigenous companies and have remained unproduced for a period of over 10 years.
Some of the companies which emerged winners at the time included: Matrix Energy, AA Rano, Andova Plc, Duport Midstream, Genesis Technical, Twin Summit, Bono Energy, Deep Offshore Integrated, Oodua Oil, MRS and Petrogas.
A few others that succeeded in crossing the hurdle and had fully satisfied all conditions were: North Oils and Gas, Pierport, Metropole, Pioneer Global, Shepherd Hill, Akata, NIPCO, Aida, YY Connect, Accord Oil, Pathway Oil, Tempo Oil, Virgin Forest among others.
The process was hailed as a big win for local oil and gas companies in the country, which had a good outing during the ceremony as 100 per cent of the beneficiaries of the exercise were indigenous entities.
Nigeria last conducted marginal field bid rounds in 2003, with 16 of the fields contributing just two per cent to the national oil and gas reserves.
The commission also stated that its target revenue for 2022 remained N3.38 trillion, substantially exceeding its 2021 revenue projection of N3 trillion and that of 2020 which was pegged at N1.746 trillion.
In a presentation it made to the Senate Committee on Petroleum, Upstream, led by Mr Bassey Akpan, during an oversight meeting at its headquarters in Abuja, the agency led by Mr Gbenga Komolafe, explained that it hit N1.99 trillion revenue in 2020, surpassing its forecast of N1.746 trillion by about 13.98 per cent.
But in 2021, with a revenue target of N3.066 trillion, the commission pointed out that it generated N2.711 trillion, achieving 88.45 per cent of its revenue forecast which is usually paid into the federal government coffers.
It stated that in spite of the reduced fiscal provision in the PIA, the organisation was set to achieve its desired revenue target for 2022.
Furthermore, the NURPC lamented that with the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) production quota of 1.683 million bpd in January and 1.701 million barrels per day in February, it is only able to pump 1.396 million barrels per day currently, leading to a loss of at least 115,926 million barrels per day on a daily basis, put at roughly $300 million monthly.
“We are losing about 115, 926 barrels per day, so that literally translates to roughly about $300 million and that’s a huge loss to a nation that actually requires these funds,” he stated.
Mr Komolafe attributed the underperformance to mostly oil theft, sabotage, vandalism as well as technical issues, including ruptures associated with the assets.
“But the larger percentage is due to crude oil theft and as a commission we know the impact of this and recognising our regulatory role, we have been able to reach out to other operators as to what we can do about this.
“We are trying to put in place an industry-wide initiative to ameliorate the situation and we are expecting to go live in terms of implementation in collaboration with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) and the other stakeholders,” he added.
However, he stated that despite the encumbrances, it would continue to promote an enabling environment for investment in the upstream petroleum sector, establish, monitor and regulate as well as enforce environmental measures and optimise government’s take from the country’s hydrocarbon resources.
In addition, the commission vowed to ensure compliance with the terms and conditions of leases and licences granted, enforce all laws relating to upstream operations as well as maintain a petroleum industry data bank.
Mr Komolafe, responding to issues raised by the senators on the environmental degradation in the Niger Delta, stated that there are provisions in the PIA which provide for remediation.
He stated that the commission recognises that the job was enormous and had set up an internal committee to liaise with the senate steering committee to work on regulations for the industry.
The agency’s chief executive stated that if fully implemented, the PIA would take care of issues connected with the environment, adding that while some pollutions are attributable to normal oil operations, others could be credited to sabotage by other parties.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigeria’s Minister of Steel Development, Mr Shuaibu Abubakar Audu, has told European investors that the country’s steel sector alone consumes about $10 billion annually, presenting a huge market opportunity for serious global players.
In a statement by the Director of Information and Public Relations in the ministry, Ms Salamatu Jibaniya, it was stated that the Minister made this disclosure when he took Nigeria’s industrialisation drive to Germany, declaring that the country is ready to trade its abundant raw materials status and embrace full-scale value addition.
Addressing the Nigeria–German Economic Forum in Dortmund, Mr Audu projected Nigeria as Africa’s next industrial hub, in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu.
“With a population of nearly 250 million, largely youthful and energetic, Nigeria is primed for industrial take-off,” he said.
He disclosed that the country holds over three billion tonnes of iron ore, alongside vast deposits of limestone, manganese, copper, lead-zinc, lithium and rare-earth minerals, positioning Nigeria for both domestic industrial growth and export expansion.
Mr Audu urged EU investors to key into steel and aluminium production, mineral beneficiation and processing, as well as critical infrastructure development covering power, rail, gas and ports.
He stressed that beyond capital inflow, Nigeria is prioritising technology transfer and technical skills development to strengthen local capacity.
At the high-level forum, the minister was received by Germany’s Minister for Federal, International and European Affairs, Mr Nathanael Liminski; Lord Mayor of Dortmund, Mr Alexander Kalouti; President of the Dortmund Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mr Heinz-Herbert Dustmann; and Consul General to Slovakia, Mr Klaus Wagener.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
To boost Nigeria’s cocoa export value chain, Sunbeth Global Concepts Limited has secured approval to issue commercial papers worth N200 billion to investors.
In the first tranche, the cocoa exporter will sell the debt instrument worth about N100 billion in three series across three tenors of 180 days, 270 days and 364 days.
Subscription for the CP commenced on Friday, February 27, 2026, and will close on Thursday, March 5, 2026, with allotment and settlement scheduled for Friday, March 6, 2026.
Interested investors can purchase the commercial papers with a minimum of N5 million and in multiples of N1,000 thereafter.
The company stated that proceeds from the exercise would be used to finance contractual working capital requirements, including inventory procurement and the execution of physical and hedged offtake obligations within its export operations.
The Chief Operating Officer of Sunbeth, Mr Nzubechukwu Anisiobi, said the programme reflects the firm’s disciplined capital strategy and strong credit fundamentals.
“The establishment of our N200 billion Commercial Paper Programme reflects our disciplined capital strategy and solid credit profile.
“In a working capital-intensive export business, access to structured short-term funding strengthens liquidity, supports efficient contract execution and preserves balance sheet stability,” he stated.
Further emphasising investor confidence in the company’s governance and risk framework, he noted that, “The Programme underscores the confidence the capital markets have in our governance standards, earnings resilience and robust risk management discipline.”
Sunbeth, which is a top-five non-oil export contributor in Nigeria, was established in 2017 and has exported over 200,000 metric tonnes of cocoa beans and 60,000 metric tonnes of cashew nuts to international markets.
In 2025, it recorded over N600 billion in revenue, reinforcing its scale within Nigeria’s agricultural export ecosystem.
The organisation works directly with more than 30,000 farmers and collaborates with over 250 local buying agents across Nigeria.
Its global strategic partners include Cargill, GCB Group, JB Cocoa, Touton, Macquarie and StoneX, enabling diversified offtake and multi-destination market access across Europe, Asia and the United States.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Five price advancers buoyed the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 1.88 per cent on Tuesday, March 3, as the demand for unlisted stocks continues to grow.
During the session, the market capitalisation added N46.64 billion to close at N2.524 trillion versus the Monday session’s N2.477 trillion, and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) increased by 77.94 points to finish at 4,219.47 points compared with the previous day’s 4,141.53 points.
11 Plc gained N13.23 yesterday to sell at N290.23 per share compared with the preceding session’s N277.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc appreciated by N7.76 to N117.76 per unit from N110.00 per unit, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc improved by N7.05 to N84.05 per share from N70.00 per share, First Trust Mortgage Bank Plc added 17 Kobo to close at N1.92 per unit versus N1.75 per unit, and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc advanced by 4 Kobo to settle at 49 Kobo per share versus 45 Kobo per share.
On the flip side, Food Concepts Plc dropped 37 Kobo to sell at N3.39 per unit compared with the previous day’s N3.76 per unit, and NASD Plc dipped 20 to N56.21 per share from N56.41 per share.
On Tuesday, the volume of securities went down by 19.6 per cent to 1.4 million units from 1.8 million units, but the value of securities increased by 447.2 per cent to N93.4 million from N17.1 million, and the number of deals soared by 118.5 per cent to 59 deals from 27 deals.
At the close of transactions, CSCS Plc remained the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 35.8 million units sold for N2.2 billion, trailed by Okitipupa Plc with 6.3 million units worth N1.1 billion, and Geo-Fluids Plc exchanged 122.8 million units valued at N480.4 million.
The most active stock by volume (year-to-date) was Resourcery Plc with 1.05 billion units worth N408.7 million, followed by Geo-Fluids Plc with 122.8 million units worth N480.4 million, and CSCS Plc with 35.8 million units transacted for N2.2 billion.
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