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By Adewale Sanyaolu
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has approved 740 drilling-related operations, comprising 595 well re-entries and 145 new well-drilling operations, alongside 39 Field Development Plans (FDPs) in the first 10 months of 2026, as Nigeria intensifies efforts to ramp up crude oil production and attract fresh investments.
Commission Chief Executive,(CCE), NUPRC, Mrs Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, disclosed the figures during the management session of the 44th Annual International Conference and Exhibition of the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE) in Lagos on Tuesday, with the theme, “Energy Security in an Era of Global Disruption: Positioning Nigeria for Resilience, Competitiveness, and Prosperity.”
The approvals, which underscore increased regulatory activity in the upstream petroleum sector, come as Nigeria’s total rig count has risen to 100, with 46 currently active in drilling operations. Eyesan, who was represented by the Deputy Director, Basinal Administration, NUPRC, Ahmad Abdullahi, said the increased approvals reflected improvements in the Commission’s regulatory processes, particularly the time required to grant operational clearances.
According to her, faster approval processes have reduced delays and the additional costs incurred by operators while waiting for regulatory authorisation to execute projects.
“Year to date, about 39 FDPs have been approved. About 145 new well-drilling approvals granted. Year to date, about 595 well re-entry approvals were granted.
That goes to tell that as a commission, we have improved our approval time level, which again reduces costs that are being wasted or for projects to continue to wait for approval,” she said.
She explained that the Commission’s priority was to ensure that regulatory approvals translated into increased production and adequate energy supply.
“From the regulator’s perspective, to ensure that our energy security is not threatened, we must ensure that we approve Field Development Plans and new well-drilling applications to meet our production targets and guarantee energy availability,” Eyesan stated.
On drilling activities, the NUPRC boss said Nigeria’s rig count had increased by more than 300 per cent compared with the level recorded in 2021, reflecting renewed activities in the upstream industry.
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“We have more than 100 rigs in country. About 46 rigs are actively involved in drilling year to date. If you compare this with maybe what we had in 2021, you will see that you have more than about 300 per cent increase,” she said.
Eyesan attributed the growth in investment activities to improved regulatory certainty, noting that investors were more willing to commit capital when they had confidence in the policy and operating environment.
She also identified the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) as a major factor in rebuilding investor confidence, particularly in the acquisition of seismic data required for oil and gas exploration.
The NUPRC chief disclosed that multi-client seismic companies had invested more than $100 million in seismic data acquisition in Nigeria within three years of the enactment of the PIA.
“Based on our record, in the last three years, from the enactment of PIA, multi-client companies have invested more than $100 million in acquiring seismic data in Nigeria,” she said.
The investments are expected to deepen geological understanding of the country’s sedimentary basins, improve exploration decisions and support the discovery of additional hydrocarbon reserves.
On efforts to tackle crude oil theft and improve security across the industry, Eyesan said the Commission had introduced initiatives, including the Advanced Cargo Declaration programme and coordinated surveillance operations involving the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), private security operators such as Tantita Security Services and the Nigerian Navy.
She said the Commission’s responsibility went beyond punishing errant operators and perpetrators of oil theft.
According to her, the broader objective was to establish an operating environment in which legitimate crude oil production would be more profitable than crude oil theft.
