The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission has opened discussions with Indonesia on petroleum investments, with Indonesian national oil company Pertamina expressing interest in Nigeria’s 2026 licensing round.

The development followed a meeting between NUPRC chief executive Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, Indonesia’s deputy foreign affairs minister Arif Havas Oegroseno, and Toriq Abdat, vice-president of Upstream Business Development, Pertamina, according to a statement on Sunday by Eniola Akinkuotu, the commission’s spokesman.

Nigeria and Indonesia shared similar priorities, including energy security, resource utilisation, and investments in the sector, as both countries seek to increase oil production, with Nigeria targeting three million barrels per day by 2030.

Nigeria currently produces about 1.6 million to 1.7 million bpd, while Indonesia produces about 600,000 bpd and is also seeking to increase output.

Mr Abdat said Pertamina had been mandated to expand its operations internationally and was exploring opportunities in countries including Malaysia, Iraq and Nigeria.

“In Indonesia, we are producing only around 600,000 barrels. We are working on exploration towards deepwater, but we found more gas than oil. That is why we go outside Indonesia, Malaysia, then the Middle East, Iraq and Nigeria,” he said.

Mr Abdat said Pertamina was seeking producing assets, projects nearing production or opportunities ahead of Final Investment Decision. He said the company was open to both competitive bidding and bilateral arrangements with governments.

“We would like to be in projects with governments, producing assets, near production or before FID. Now we are looking at how we can help you reach the three million, and also help us provide more energy for our own consumption,” Mr Abdat said.

He expressed interest in opportunities beyond crude oil and natural gas, particularly in the fertiliser sector, adding that Pertamina was developing a fertiliser plant to reduce Indonesia’s dependence on supplies from the Middle East amid disruptions caused by global conflicts. He linked food security to the oil and gas sector, noting the importance of phosphate and other elements used in fertiliser production.

Ms Eyesan said Nigeria’s production target was ambitious, adding that the 2026 licensing round was one strategy being deployed to achieve it.

“We have very aggressive targets, three million barrels per day by 2030, and today we are at 1.6, 1.7. We are committed to the objective and the licensing round is one of the strategies we are utilising,” she said.

Ms Eyesan said licensing rounds had become a recurring exercise in Nigeria rather than an occasional process, following their institutionalisation under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021. She said the most recent commercial bid conference, held in July, featured 50 assets, with 37 awarded.

The NUPRC boss said Nigeria had also reviewed its fiscal terms in response to competition for the same pool of global investment capital. She said the country had reduced entry barriers, including signature bonuses, to encourage investment in the upstream sector.

Nigeria, in turn, is diversifying its phosphate sources, including through a long-term transatlantic pipeline project with Morocco aimed at serving West Africa.

The meeting ended with both sides agreeing to sustain commercial and diplomatic engagements on potential areas of cooperation.

(NAN)