The processes for the lease of 57 Nigerian marginal oil fields are still being perfected, the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) said on Friday.

Paul Osu, DPR’s spokesman told the NAN on in Lagos that the bidding process has not been completed.

“The 2020 marginal oilfield bid round process is still ongoing in line with our published timelines on DPR website and bid portal.

“Over 600 companies have applied to be prequalified for the bid rounds which began on June 1. However, the DPR had put measures in place to ensure that the awardees would be credible investors with technical and financial capability.

“The objective of the 2020 marginal field bid round was to deepen the participation of indigenous companies in the upstream segment of the industry and provide opportunities for technical and financial partnerships for investors,” Mr. Osu said.

The DPR media head said the last time the country conducted marginal field bid rounds was in 2003. 

Mr. Osu stated that 16 marginal oil fields currently contribute two percent to the national oil and gas reserves while bringing development to host communities in the Niger Delta.

A marginal oil field is any field that has reserves booked and reported annually to the DPR and was unproductive for a period of over 10 years.