Nigeria Unveils Ambitious Reforms to Hit 3 Million Barrels Per Day by 2030
The new Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria’s upstream petroleum regulator has unveiled a comprehensive reform agenda aimed at boosting the country’s oil production to 2 million barrels per day by 2027 and 3 million barrels per day by 2030, signaling a dramatic shift in how Africa’s largest oil producer manages its petroleum sector.
Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, who leads the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, disclosed the ambitious plan following a high-level stakeholders’ meeting in Lagos on Wednesday. The vision rests on three key pillars: production optimization and revenue expansion, regulatory predictability and speed, and safe, governed and sustainable operations.
The agenda aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope initiative and comes after the president replaced the chief executives of both the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority and NUPRC in December as part of ongoing reforms in the oil and gas sector. The shake-up followed allegations of corruption and economic sabotage leveled against the former NMDPRA chief, Farouk Ahmed, by Aliko Dangote, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Dangote Group.
Eyesan succeeded Gbenga Komolafe, who was appointed in 2021 by former President Muhammadu Buhari and confirmed by the Senate. At the meeting, which was attended by members of the Oil Producers Trade Section, the Independent Petroleum Producers Group, emerging players and other key stakeholders in the oil and gas industry, she outlined specific strategies to achieve the production targets.
The plan to boost output and revenue will be driven by the recovery of shut-in volumes with economic value, arresting production decline, reducing losses and accelerating time-to-first oil, without increasing regulatory burdens or transaction costs. The strategy is already yielding results, with Eyesan citing the recent reactivation of a long shut-in asset, which she described as “turning on the light.”
Regulatory predictability and speed will be achieved by running regulation as a service, enforcing rules transparently and making timely, time-bound decisions. The commission has also pledged to strengthen governance, process safety, host community outcomes and decarbonization efforts through safe, governed and sustainable operations.
Going forward, the commission will be measured on several key success metrics including faster and predictable regulatory approvals, higher and more secure and sustainable production, credible licensing and disciplined acreage performance, world-class health, safety and environment outcomes, and trusted measurement, transparency, governance and data integrity.
To enhance regulatory efficiency and predictability, the commission will publish Service Level Agreements for all major approvals. Timelines to production will be shortened through proactive engagement on required approvals, the implementation of stage-gate processes and mutually agreed timelines between operators and the commission.
Stakeholders are encouraged to submit their projects for consideration, with matured opportunities to be submitted at the latest by the end of the first quarter of 2026. This framework will create obligations for both operators and the commission.
The commission has also announced plans to launch a digital workflow for permitting, reporting and data submissions. NUPRC will work with industry players to identify capacity gaps and develop tiered interventions in critical areas to improve regulatory efficiency while harmonizing internal processes to reduce friction.
Eyesan disclosed that the commission’s internal transformation program, driven through a project management office, is already underway. She also announced the creation of a “CCE-Operators Leadership Forum” for monthly engagements involving all operators, including the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, OPTS, IPPG and emerging players.
The forum will focus on approval timelines, production restoration, infrastructure integrity, and gas monetization and development, enabling the commission to identify systemic bottlenecks and improve predictability. The commission will also strengthen hydrocarbon accounting and measurement by tracking every barrel produced and addressing discrepancies or losses promptly.
On host communities, operators are urged to work closely with the commission as it plans its first engagement with host community leaders to reaffirm commitment to Host Community Development Trust implementation. Achieving full compliance with the Petroleum Industry Act within 12 months is one of the key priorities, with progress to be monitored by a dedicated team.
The commission will issue quarterly progress reports going forward. A 90-day program to fast track approvals for near-ready field development plans, well interventions, rig mobilization and other quick-win opportunities has already commenced.
Source: premiumtimesng.com via allafrica.com
