By Ono Yima
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) has commenced a formal bid process to sell equity stakes in some of its oil and gas assets, signalling a renewed push to optimise its portfolio and attract fresh investment into the country’s struggling upstream sector.
Details of the bid process were outlined in an invitation document obtained by Reuters on Monday. Although NNPC Ltd did not disclose the specific assets involved, the size of the stakes on offer, or the funds it hopes to raise, the move aligns with an earlier announcement by the company to divest or reduce at least 25 per cent equity in select oil and gas fields.
Under the process, interested bidders are required to register online by January 10, after which a pre-screening exercise will be conducted to determine qualified participants. Successful firms will then be granted access to a secure virtual data room containing detailed technical and commercial information on the assets.
According to the document, prequalification will be based on bidders’ technical competence and financial capacity, followed by document evaluation, negotiations, and the securing of all relevant regulatory approvals. The structure of the process is aimed at ensuring that only investors with the requisite expertise and funding capacity are considered.
The divestment plan comes against the backdrop of persistent challenges in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector, including declining crude oil output, ageing infrastructure, regulatory uncertainty, and waning foreign investor confidence. Industry data show that Nigeria has struggled in recent years to meet its OPEC production quota, largely due to underinvestment and operational disruptions.
By offering stakes in both wholly owned and joint venture assets—some of which are operated alongside international oil companies such as Shell, Chevron, Eni, and TotalEnergies—NNPC Ltd is seeking to unlock capital for reinvestment, improve asset performance, and drive incremental production, particularly from onshore and shallow-water fields.
The strategy also reflects a broader government push to encourage private-sector participation and indigenous operatorship, especially as international oil firms increasingly divest from onshore and shallow-water assets in favour of deepwater and low-carbon opportunities.
However, the plan has not been without controversy. Oil sector unions have previously opposed proposals to reduce government equity in producing fields, warning that excessive divestment could undermine national control over strategic energy resources.
NNPC Ltd’s latest move follows the recent resolution of a long-running dispute over ExxonMobil’s planned divestment of its stake in Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited (MPNU) to Seplat Energy Plc. The settlement agreement, announced earlier this year, cleared the way for the transaction after nearly two years of legal and regulatory wrangling.
Despite operational challenges, NNPC Ltd’s financial performance has shown improvement. The company generated N29.21 trillion from crude oil sales in 2024, more than double the N14.07 trillion recorded in 2023, underscoring the central role of oil revenues in Nigeria’s fiscal outlook.
Analysts say the success of the ongoing divestment process will depend on transparency, regulatory clarity, and the ability of new investors to rapidly deploy capital and technical expertise to boost production and revenue in Africa’s largest oil-producing economy.