Pertamina Eyes Nigeria’s 2026 Licensing Round As NUPRC, Indonesia Deepen Energy Ties
By Sunday Etuka
Indonesian national oil company Pertamina has expressed strong interest in Nigeria’s upcoming 2026 licensing round, as the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) opened fresh talks with Indonesia on petroleum investments.
The development followed a meeting between NUPRC Chief Executive, Mrs. Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, Indonesia’s Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Arif Havas Oegroseno, and Toriq Abdat, Pertamina’s Vice President for upstream business development.
Eyesan said the two countries share similar priorities centered on energy security, resource utilization and attracting investments.
Both nations are pushing to raise output. Nigeria currently produces about 1.7 million barrels of oil per day and is targeting 3 million by 2030, while Indonesia, producing roughly 600,000 barrels daily, is aiming for 2.3 million by 2030, a goal it says cannot be met from domestic fields alone.
“We have been given a mandate to expand our business internationally, we are now in other countries outside Indonesia,” Abdat said. “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.”
Abdat said Pertamina is seeking producing assets or projects near production, including opportunities available before a final investment decision, and would consider both competitive bids and bilateral arrangements.
“We would like to be in projects with governments,” he said, adding that the company was looking at ways to help Nigeria reach its 3 million barrel target while also boosting energy supply for Indonesia’s own consumption.
Eyesan,in a statement on Sunday by the NUPRC’s Head of Corporate Communications and Media, Eniola Akinkuotu, responded that Nigeria’s targets are equally demanding. “We have very aggressive targets, 3 million barrels per day by 2030, and today we are at 1.6, 1.7,” she said, noting that the licensing round is one of the strategies being used to pursue that objective.
She explained that licensing rounds have become a recurring rather than occasional exercise, institutionalised under the Petroleum Industry Act 2021. The most recent bid conference, held in July, offered 50 assets and awarded 37.
According to Eyesan, Nigeria’s fiscal terms have been reset in direct response to global competition for investment capital, with entry barriers such as signature bonuses reduced to attract more interest.
The Indonesian delegation also disclosed plans to explore opportunities beyond crude oil and gas, including a fertiliser plant aimed at reducing dependence on Middle Eastern supply amid disruptions from the ongoing global conflict.
Officials noted that food security is closely tied to oil and gas, since phosphate and related elements are key fertiliser components.
Nigeria is similarly diversifying its phosphate sourcing, including a long-term transatlantic pipeline project with Morocco to serve West Africa, alongside simplified fertiliser distribution rules that previously involved about 160 layers of regulation.
Both sides agreed to keep commercial and diplomatic engagement moving forward in parallel.
