Uche Cecil Izuora
The Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) Nigeria Council has said, that Nigeria’s energy industry is entering a new phase driven by regulatory reforms, improved transparency, indigenous capacity and renewed efforts to attract long term capital.
The Society observed that the industry is regaining global investor confidence as reforms, transparent licensing rounds and accelerated gas development reposition the country as an attractive investment destination towards the prospects of achieving three million barrels of oil production per day by 2030.
Chairman of the SPE Nigeria Council, Mr.Francis Nwaochei, made the remarks at the opening ceremony of the 49th Nigeria Annual International Conference and Exhibition (NAICE 2026) in Lagos on Monday.
The conference has the theme:Thriving in the Evolving Global Energy Landscape: Collaborative Growth and Resilience”.
He said the recent policy reforms and coordinated actions by government and industry stakeholders were restoring confidence across the petroleum sector after years of declining investment.
He made reference to the successful conclusion of the 2025 Licensing Round, in which 31 companies emerged winners of 37 oil and gas blocks, as evidence of renewed investor appetite and a more transparent competitive bidding process.
“The industry is not standing still. The conclusion of recent licensing and bid rounds signals renewed investor interest and a more transparent competitive process.”
The SPE Nigeria Council Chairman noted that the Federal Government’s Decade of Gas initiative was steadily positioning natural gas as the foundation for industrialisation, improved electricity supply, cleaner energy access and economic diversification.
He also described the Federal Government’s planned N4 trillion government-backed bond to settle verified debts owed to electricity generation companies and gas suppliers as a significant intervention that would restore liquidity, improve bankability and strengthen confidence across Nigeria’s power and gas value chain.
According to him, these developments complement the broader vision of the Federal Government to increase crude oil production, deepen gas commercialisation and create a more predictable and investor-friendly operating environment.
He noted that the Ministers of State for Petroleum Resources, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority had consistently aligned around the goal of attracting investment, improving regulatory efficiency, expanding gas utilisation and growing Nigeria’s production capacity to three million barrels per day by 2030.
“The reforms, investments, regulatory actions and industry commitments we are witnessing today are the beginning of what resilience truly means for Nigeria’s energy industry,” he said.
Nwaochei said Nigeria possesses significant competitive advantages, including abundant hydrocarbon resources, resilient indigenous operators, world-class technical professionals and an expanding technology ecosystem capable of supporting long-term industry growth.
He, however, stressed that sustaining the industry’s momentum would require policy consistency, stronger regulatory coordination, technology deployment, local content development and greater collaboration among government, operators and investors.
“Nigeria’s energy future will be determined not only by the resources beneath our soil, but by how we develop technical solutions to our unique challenges, the quality of our leadership, the strength of our institutions, the clarity and stability of our policies, our willingness to innovate and our commitment to collaboration,” he said.
He urged participants at the three-day conference to move beyond identifying industry challenges and instead develop practical, implementable solutions capable of positioning Nigeria as a globally competitive energy destination.
The conference, one of Africa’s largest annual gatherings of petroleum professionals, will attract government officials, regulators, international and indigenous oil companies, service providers, investors, researchers, technology firms and students from Nigeria and other countries to discuss the future of the energy industry.