OPINION: For 12 years there has been no serious attempt by the Nigerian government to license fresh acreage, despite periodic lamentation over poor progress in replacing oil reserves and an avowed commitment to push through legal and institutional reforms.
Last weekend saw the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, promise an end to these lean times, disclosing official intent to launch a new round in 2020 — but without stipulating a timeline or whether the exercise will be limited to marginal fields or comprise a broader swath of open acreage.
