Nigeria provisionally awards tenders to develop 57 marginal oilfields -sources

By Libby George
LAGOS, March 10 (Reuters) - Nigeria's petroleum regulator
has provisionally awarded tenders to develop 57 of its marginal
oilfields, four sources familiar with the matter told Reuters,
which could net the government $500 million in signature
bonuses.
Provisional award letters, sent last week by the Department
of Petroleum Resources (DPR), requested payment within 45 days
in order to secure the awards.
A DPR spokesman did not immediately return a call, email or
text messages seeking comment.
Marginal fields are smaller oil blocks typically developed
by indigenous companies. Nigeria is looking to production from
the fields to bolster state finances and increase local
participation in the oil sector, which provides the bulk of the
country's foreign exchange.
While local companies have become increasingly important to
the industry, it remains dominated by international oil majors.
The 57 fields in the current auction, which was launched
last June, are part of the first marginal field round in nearly
20 years. L8N2DE457
DPR head Sarki Auwalu has said previously that he expects
Nigeria to net $500 million from the signature bonuses, which
companies can for the first time pay in either dollars or naira.
[https://reut.rs/3euHJbZ
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The sources said the bonuses each company will pay range
from a few million dollars to more than $12 million.
As of last month, 161 bidders were still in the running for
the fields. One of the letters seen by Reuters awards a share of
one of the fields, and says the company will be expected to
develop it with several unnamed companies.
Sources told Reuters that the DPR was awarding each field to
more than one company, a process referred to as "arranged
marriages" in the Nigerian oil and gas industry.
Participants have said the process lacks transparency, and
that placing companies together on fields without their
agreement could hinder field development.
Of the 24 fields awarded in the last round, in 2002, only 13
are producing. The government revoked the 11 non-producing
licenses, though there are ongoing legal challenges.