Economy
NUPRC Holds 2025 Licensing Round Pre-Bid Conference January 14
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has announced January 14, 2026, for the pre-bid conference of the 2025 oil and gas licensing round.
The conference comes as the federal government intensifies efforts to attract fresh upstream investments.
In an announcement notice dated January 8, 2026, and signed by the commission’s chief executive, Mrs Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, the event will take place in Lagos.
The notice, published on the official X handle of the agency, said, “The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission is proud to announce the 2025 licensing round pre-bid conference scheduled for 9 am on Wednesday, January 14, 2026, at the Grand Ballroom, Eko Hotels and Suites, Lagos.”
The pre-bid conference is a key milestone in the licensing round process and is expected to provide prospective investors with detailed guidance on the conduct of the bid exercise.
According to the organisation, discussions at the conference will focus on the implementation timetable for the licensing round, bid package preparation, eligibility requirements, as well as the assessment criteria and procedures for determining winning bidders.
The upstream regulator explained that the announcement followed an earlier notice published in both local and international newspapers, in compliance with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
“The focus areas of the upcoming pre-bid conference include the implementation timetable, bid package preparation, eligibility terms, and the assessment and winners’ determination procedure. Interested members of the public are urged to register for the pre-bid conference through the portal br2025.nuprc.gov.ng,” the notice stated.
It added that comprehensive information on the licensing round, including guidelines, block descriptions and participation instructions, is available on the commission’s website.
“Detailed information on the licensing round guidelines, block descriptions and participation instructions is also available on the website, nuprc.gov.ng. We look forward to your participation,” it concluded.
Recall that last year, the erstwhile Commission Chief Executive, Mr Gbenga Komolafe, announced that the 2025 oil block licensing bid round would commence on December 1.
The 2025 licensing round, expected to offer 50 blocks across multiple terrains, is part of a broader agenda to rebuild confidence in Africa’s largest oil producer, deepen indigenous participation, and reposition Nigeria as a competitive investment destination.
The licensing round comes at a time when Nigeria is seeking to reverse years of declining upstream investment caused by regulatory uncertainty, oil theft and project delays.
Since the enactment of the Petroleum Industry Act in 2021, the NUPRC has overseen multiple bid rounds aimed at improving transparency, competitiveness and investor confidence in the upstream sector.
Pre-bid conferences have become increasingly important under the PIA regime, as they provide clarity on fiscal terms, compliance obligations and the evaluation framework, helping to reduce disputes and post-award uncertainty.
The last licensing round conducted by the commission attracted a mix of indigenous and international players, with the regulator pledging to ensure a transparent and commercially competitive process.
The NUPRC said it looks forward to broad participation at the Lagos conference, signalling what could be another major test of investor appetite for Nigeria’s upstream assets.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has defended its decision to allow Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) to invest in the parent companies of their custodians, insisting that adequate safeguards are in place to protect contributors’ funds.
The director-general of the pension regulator, Ms Omolola Oloworaran, speaking on Tuesday during the Meet the Press Briefing at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, said the commission’s decision to relax the investment restriction followed a comprehensive risk assessment that found minimal conflict of interest.
She explained that under PenCom’s investment regulations, PFAs are only permitted to invest pension assets in carefully selected instruments that meet stringent criteria, including profitability, strong credit ratings and proven track records.
According to her, the commission regularly reviews its investment regulations, conducts routine examinations and spot checks on PFAs to ensure strict compliance with established risk management guidelines.
“PFAs cannot just go into the stock market and buy any kind of stock. There are strict guidelines. Companies must demonstrate profitability, have a proven track record and satisfy other criteria before pension funds can invest,” she said.
Ms Oloworaran noted that each PFA also operates under the oversight of a board, an investment committee and a risk management committee, providing additional layers of governance to safeguard contributors’ funds.
She said PenCom recently issued a circular allowing PFAs to invest in the parent companies of their custodians after determining that the potential conflict of interest was negligible.
The PenCom boss explained that the parent companies involved are largely Tier-1 banks, including First Bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA) and Zenith Bank, which she described as A-rated institutions with strong financial foundations.
She said the policy was intended to widen investment opportunities for pension funds without compromising safety.
Using Stanbic IBTC as an example, Ms Oloworaran explained that if its custodian is Zenith Bank, the previous restriction prevented the pension administrator from investing in Zenith Bank shares despite the bank’s strong performance.
“We reviewed the risks and any potential conflict of interest and found the risks to be very low. That is why we opened that investment window,” she said.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Analysts at Meristem Research have predicted that the inflation rate for June 2026 in Nigeria should marginally rise to 15.95 per cent on a year-on-year basis from the 15.93 per cent reported in May 2026.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) is expected to release inflation numbers for last month later today, Wednesday, July 15, 2026.
In its report sighted by Business Post, Meristem Research said it expects inflationary pressures to re-emerge across key economies in the near term, as the re-escalation of the US-Iran conflict has reignited upward pressure on global oil prices.
It disclosed that this marks a sharp reversal from most of June, when the ceasefire between the two countries helped drive oil prices lower, raising expectations of some relief on the inflation front.
With conflicts now flaring up again, oil prices are likely to increase again, and the anticipated easing in energy-driven inflation may not materialise as broadly as earlier envisaged.
“Nonetheless, some relief is likely from the food segment, where robust supply conditions across major producing regions and softening demand should continue to ease food price pressures,” it stated.
The team also explained that it projected a 15.95 per cent inflation rate because of the lingering effects of persistent food price pressures.
“However, we expect core inflation to moderate as the sharp reversal in energy prices begins to filter through to transportation, distribution, and other energy-related costs, easing underlying price pressures.
“On a month-on-month basis, the combined effect of lower petrol prices, a relatively stable Naira, and the gradual pass-through of reduced energy costs across the supply chain should exert further downward pressure on inflation.
“Based on our assessment, food inflation is expected to remain the key swing factor, as seasonal pre-harvest supply constraints are likely to offset some of the gains from lower logistics costs,” it said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The duo of Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc and Afriland Properties Plc weakened the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 1.61 per cent on Tuesday, July 14.
CSCS Plc saw its stock value drop N9.08 to close at N82.40 per share compared with the preceding session’s N91.48 per share, and Afriland Properties Plc slid by 17 Kobo to sell at N15.00 per unit versus N15.70 per unit.
The losses recorded by the two securities pulled back the market capitalisation by N41.64 billion to N2.546 trillion from N2.587 trillion, and cracked the NASD Security Index (NSI) by 69.36 points to 4,242.31 points from 4,311.67 points.
It was observed that the exchange witnessed two price advancers during the session, led by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc, which gained N1.37 to end at N151.37 per share compared with the previous day’s N150.00 per share, and Food Concepts Plc chalked up 5 Kobo to settle at N2.50 per unit versus N2.45 per unit.
The volume of securities traded by market participants surged by 50.7 per cent to 13.7 million units from the previous 9.1 million units, while the value of securities went down by 79.7 per cent to N65.2 million from N320.4 million, and the number of deals crashed by 3.6 per cent to 27 deals from the previous session’s 28 deals.
At the close of transactions, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with the sale of 3.4 billion units for N8.4 billion, trailed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc, which exchanged 2.3 billion units valued at N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 73.9 million units transacted for N5.2 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the trading day as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units traded for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units valued at N415.7 million.
