All articles in the Farm in, Farm Out Section:

VAARIS is Now the Likely Winner of TOTAL’s 10% Stake in the RAEC Operated JV

Section: Farm in, Farm Out · November 13, 2025 · No comments |

By Prosper Mugambi, in Port Harcourt

There are strong indications that TOTALEnergies is close to signing a Sale and Purchase Agreement with an SPV named VAARIS for its 10% equity in the Renaissance Africa/NNPC/ENI/TOTAL Joint Venture, covering 18 oil mining leases (OMLs) in onshore and shallow water eastern, central and western Niger Delta basin.

VAARIS was the reserved bidder in the bid process to purchase the asset from TOTAL, coming second after Chappal Energies who won the bid.

TOTAL and Chappal did not close the transaction even after they had both received regulatory approval for the sale and purchase

Read more.

QatarEnergy Is All Over the African Map

Section: Farm in, Farm Out · November 6, 2025 · No comments |

When QatarEnergy announced its farm-in transaction with ENI, acquiring a 40% stake in the North Rafah block in late October 2025, media reports cited it as the company’s seventh offshore position in Egypt.

The North Rafah acquisition had come less than three weeks after the company had teamed up with Shell to acquire a 27% participating interest in the North Cleopatra block in the same country.

Qatar’s state hydrocarbon firm had been creeping up the African hydrocarbon map for a while, but now it is all over the place. Last June, it was involved in the Algerian bid round, winning a new exploration block, named Ahara, as a partner with TOTALEnergies.

From Namibia through Côte d’Ivoire to Morocco, the one mid-eastern company likely to show up in an African bid round…

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Aradel Moves towards Owning 53% of Renaissance

Section: Farm in, Farm Out · November 5, 2025 · No comments |

Aradel Holdings has reached an agreement for the acquisition of an additional 40% equity interest in ND Western Limited.

This takeover is largely about the Switzerland based Petrolin selling its 40% of ND Western, which is the holder of the Oil Mining Lease (OML) 34 Joint Venture with the NNPC E&P.

It also means that, when the regulatory hurdles are cleared, Aradel will have 53% of Renaissance (RAEC), an outcome that will make RAEC a subsidiary of Aradel.

As Aradel Plc already owns 41.7% of NDWestern, this move means that it is aiming at owning 81.7% of the company.

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Nigerian Indies Have Had Sour Experiences in the Rest of Africa

Section: Farm in, Farm Out · October 9, 2025 · No comments |

First E&P’s entry into Tanzania’s Mnazi Bay North Block (MBNB) is the company’s second foray into a jurisdiction outside Nigeria, its home country. Prior to signing an MoU with the Tanzania Petroleum Development Company, to assess the potentials of MBNB, the company had been in negotiation with Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), trying to complete the Petroleum agreement on Block GH_WB_02m since 2019.

These interests place First E&P among a few select Nigerian independents.

For, despite the fact that they have a large appetite for acquiring E&P assets and they control over 60% of crude oil and gas production in their own country, Nigerian indies hardly acquire assets outside Nigeria.

And when they do, it almost, always doesn’t work out.

Lekoil is a Nigerian company whose first exploration licence was in Namibia.

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Three Months After Licence Expiration, over 20 PPL Holders Left with Questions

Section: Farm in, Farm Out · September 23, 2025 · No comments |

By Oluwatobi Odeyinka, Staff Reporter

Over 20 Nigerian marginal oilfield operators whose Petroleum Prospecting Licences(PPL) expired in June 2025 are lamenting being left in limbo three months after filing applications for licence extensions.

More than 40 PPLs expired on 27 June, 2025, and over 20 of the licence holders had submitted requests for extensions to the Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), as mandated by the Commission.

However, operators who spoke to AOGR say that after meeting the Commission’s deadline to file optional extension requests by June 27, the trail has gone cold.

Attempts to get an explanation regarding the delay from the NUPRC was futile as the Commission’s Head of Communication and Media Strategy, Eniola Akinkuotu, promised to revert but never did.

According to section 78 of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021, a holder of a of a PPL must commit to a work programme, which may include, among others: drilling at least “one exploration well to a minimum depth specified in the licence… except only for frontier acreages, where the work programme during the initial exploration period may only consist of geophysical work”

The NUPRC is empowered by the PIA to receive applications for licences and approve or decline such applications. However, the Minister of Petroleum is empowered to grant or revoke licences on the recommendation of the Commission.

Chapter 2 of the PIA empowers the Commission (NUPRC) to “approve” licences and leases, but Section 3 (1) (g) says the Minister shall “upon the recommendation of the Commission, grant petroleum prospecting licences and petroleum mining leases…”

AOGR learnt that the Commission has submitted the list of approved licences to the Ministry of Petroleum Resources for final approval.

However, as of September 23, 2025, the holders of the expired PPLs are yet to receive a clear answer on the status of their licences.

“The Minister Received the List on September 15, 2025” – Spokesperson

In an exclusive chat with Nneamaka Okafor, the Special Adviser on Communication to the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, she said the Minister received the list from the NUPRC on September 15, 2025.

She argued that the Minister has up to 60 days to review the list of approved licences before granting them.

The PIA does not say the Minister has up to 60 days to review the list contrary to Ms Okafor’s claim.

The Law also does not require companies to make presentations to the Minister of Petroleum, after they have gone through the process with the NUPRC. But that’s what they are having to do now.

“This process is just adding gatekeepers along the way”, one operator said, requesting anonymity.

Ms. Okafor stressed that the Minister has not had enough time to review and give his verdict as required by the law.

Meanwhile, she noted that if the applicants had fulfilled all requirements by “reaching the threshold stipulated by the PIA, they have nothing to fear.”

“The Minister wants all wells in operation in order to increase production and for the good of the nation. So, whoever meets the threshold have nothing to fear,” she added.

AOGR reported in June 2025 that only two of the expired PPLs have been converted to Petroleum Mining Leases. The two that were converted to PMLs are PPL 218 of Multisub Energy in the Olure field, and Ingentia Energies’ PPL 202 in the Egbolom field. They can now proceed to commercial production of hydrocarbons having met the requirements stipulated in section 79 of the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021.

It was also gathered that three other PPLs of marginal field operators are close to being converted to PMLs. They are: PPL 225 of Apani Energy for the Apani field, and PPL 219 Omofejo field held by Nuway Oaklane, as well as Tulcan Energy’s PPL 244 in the Tom Shot Bank field which is due for expiration in February 2026.

Please click here for the list of licences that expired on June 27, 2025 and the companies holding them.

Angolan Next Bid Round Comes in October 2025: Licencing Sale as Route to New Oil

Section: Farm in, Farm Out · September 16, 2025 · No comments |

Angola will launch a new oil and gas licensing round before the end of October 2025, its Minister of Mineral Resources, Petroleum, and Gas has announced.

Diamantino Pedro Azevedo said the country is targeting blocks in the Kwanza and Benguela basins.

These basins have not proven much since they became the main locations for bid offering since the 2010/2011 open acreage sale, resulting in the award of 11 acreages in the pre-salt Kwanza basin, to eight (8) international companies whose exploration efforts ended mostly in dry holes. ‘Pre-salt’ means that the targeted petroleum-bearing reservoirs are located beneath a thick layer of salt deposited during the Early Cretaceous period, at the time of the separation of the continents.

Yet Angolan authorities believe fervently that the route to new significant discoveries, lie in frequent licencing rounds.

The government has returned time and again to award blocks in the Kwanza basin, pre-salt or post- salt.

The proposed new licenses, which will mark the final phase of a licensing strategy initiated in 2019 to award 50 concessions and mitigate the steep decline in oil productivity, are expected to complement Angola’s permanent offer regime (which involves placement of selected concessions on permanent offer, allowing for negotiation on blocks which had not received proposals during the normal bidding period) and marginal field development programme, both of which seek to monetise smaller or underdeveloped assets. Periodic bid rounds, permanent offer regime and marginal field programme are all intended to boost Angola’s oil production and maintain output above 1Million barrels of oil per day (BOPD) beyond 2026.

Azevedo noted that recent legislative reforms and a flexible licensing framework have helped attract new entrants and encouraged reinvestment from incumbents. The government is also advancing policies to promote the participation of domestic companies in the oil and gas sector.

Ingentia, Multisub, Receive Petroleum Mining Licences (PMLs) ..NUPRC Plans a ‘Coming Out Handshake’

Section: Farm in, Farm Out · September 9, 2025 · No comments |

By Macson Obojemuinmin, in Port Harcourt

Nigeria’s petroleum upstream regulator NUPRC moved the needle on the 2020-2022 Marginal field awards in the last two weeks when it formally converted Petroleum Prospecting Licences (PPLs) to Petroleum Mining Licences (PMLs) for some of the awardees.

In the event, Ingentia Energies, operator of Egbolom Field (Petroleum Prospecting Licence ( (PPL) 202, and Multisub Energy, operator of Olure field (PPL 218) have had their licences converted to PMLs.

These two were the first of over 40 operators of the marginal fields awarded between 2020 and 2022 to have the formal approval of their Field Development Plans.

Two others whose PPLs may have likely been converted to PMLs are Apani Energy Limited, operator of Apani field (PPL 225) and Nuway Oaklane, operator of Omofejo field (PPL 219) who, like Ingentia and Multisub, had submitted applications for conversion and completed the due diligence exercise.

Several other operators, as of the week of September 1, 2025, were awaiting optional extension approval of the Minister before applying for conversion.

The PPLs expired for most of the awardees on June 27, 2025 and have to be renewed for another three years at the behest of the regulator..

NUPRC (Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission) plans to host all PPL holders of the 2020-2022 Marginal field round to a reception in Abuja during which it would formally hand over the PMLs to Ingentia, Multisub and others whose licences may have been similarly converted. The regulator will also formally award extension of the PPLs to companies who have proven to be diligent in pursuing work programmes in executing the terms of the PPL.

TOTAL Scales over Legal Hurdles, Picks Two More Acreages in Deepwater Nigeria

Section: Farm in, Farm Out · September 2, 2025 · No comments |

By Oluwatobi Odeyinka, Staff Reporter, Lagos Headquarters

After a brief legal battle, during which a Nigerian independent objected to the process, TOTALEnergies has announced the signing of the Production Sharing Contract (PSC) for the PPL 2000 and PPL 2001 exploration licenses offshore Nigeria. The company won the blocks, along with its longstanding Nigerian partner, South Atlantic Petroleum, at the 2024 Exploration Round organized by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission.The two partners hold an 80% (TOTAL), and a 20% (SAPETRO) split.

PPLs 2000 and 2001 were carved out of Oil Prospecting Lease (OPL) 248, once operated by the Nigerian independent, Zebra Energy.

NUPRC had revoked Zebra Energy’s licence to OPL 248, citing non-performance, and put it in the 2024 bid basket.

TOTAL had always had eyes on the acreage that became PPLs 2000 and 2001. Indeed the French major had indicated it would farm in into the asset and had spent as much as $1Million on reprocessing the three dimensional (3D) seismic data and was even prepared to drill a well, as a farminee.

Zebra’s legal challenge was quashed in court, clearing the way for the widely publicised PSC signing ceremony on September 1, 2025.

PPLs 2000 & 2001, situated in water depths between 1,500metres and 2,000metres, covering an area of approximately 2,000 square kilometres, are located in a highly prospective neighbourhood in the Niger Delta basin.

The two acreages are bounded on the east by the prolific Shell operated Oil Mining Lease (OML) 118, which holds the Bonga Main Field, Bonga North, Bonga North West and Bonga South West. To the north of PPLs 2000 and 2001 sits the ExxonMobil operated OML 133, which warehouses the Erha field, Erha South prospect and the Bosi gas field. The work programme in the PSC calls for drilling at least one exploration well.

“The Awardees of 2000 and 2001 Licensees clearly have become beneficiaries of the laudable initiatives and reforms of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” remarked Gbenga Komolafe, Chief Executive of the NUPRC, at the signing ceremony. His statement referenced Mr. Tinubu’s executive orders 40, 41, and 42 on fiscal incentives, local content, and contract timelines which, many argue, have created an improved environment for investment.

“The NUPRC…devoted significant time and expertise to develop a new standardised PSC template”.

Mr. Komolafe said that the NUPRC, working hand-in-hand with stakeholders, especially NNPC Limited as the concessionaire, “devoted significant time and expertise to develop a new standardised PSC template. The PSC sets out clear terms and conditions to guide this partnership. These include:

a. The payment of a signature bonus as stipulated in the licensing round and production bonuses tied to commercial milestones, ensuring value to the Federation;

b. A defined minimum work programme, with the requirement to provide guarantees to assure performance;

c. Clear rules on cost recovery and profit oil sharing between the Federation and Contractors, in line with the fiscal provisions of the PIA and applicable laws;

d. The payment of royalties and taxes, and strict compliance with the host community development obligations under the PIA.

“TOTALEnergies is honoured to be the first international company to be awarded exploration licenses in a bid round in Nigeria in more than a decade, marking a new milestone in our long-term partnership with the country,” said Kevin McLachlan, Senior Vice-President Exploration at TOTAlEnergies. “These promising block captures are fully aligned with our strategy of strengthening our Exploration portfolio with drill-ready and high impact prospects, that have the potential for low-cost and low-emissions developments from new discoveries in our core areas of expertise.”

After A Hugely Successful Bid Round, Algerian Regulator Inks New Study Agreements

Section: Farm in, Farm Out · August 26, 2025 · No comments |

Algeria’s National Agency for Hydrocarbon Resources Valorization (Alnaft) has announced the signing of two study agreements, with the US independent Occidental Petroleum, on the oil and gas potential of El Ouabed and Dahar exploration permits, located in the south of the country.

The studies will assess hydrocarbon potential before any direct exploitation.

The agreements aim to analyze the resources of these regions and prepare for possible future developments.

This cooperation is coming several weeks after a hugely successful bid round which featured Algeria awarding five out of the six onshore blocks offered in the bid round to TOTALEnergies/ QatarEnergy partnership for the Ahara permit;. Sinopec for the Guern El Guessa permit. ENI/ PTTEP partnership for the Reggan permit. Zangas/ Suiss Filada partnership for Toual 2 zone and the Chinese company ZPEC, in league with ENI and Equinor, for Zerafa 2 permit.

Algeria wants to maintain its role as a reliable hydrocarbon supplier but the North African country’s production of oil and gas have been declining in the last several years. Algeria’s July 2025 crude oil output was 937,000Barrels of Oil Per Day, which is lower than the country’s overall 2023 average of 973,000BOPD. And while natural gas output increased robustly from 2020 to 2023, the volumes have not reached the height seen in 2010 to 2020.

The signed agreements with Occidental cover a preliminary stage of technical and geological studies to determine available resources and the conditions for developing them before any heavy capital commitments.

The next steps will depend on the study results. If significant potential is confirmed, the projects could pave the way for foreign direct investment, greater support for Algeria’s oil services industry, and stronger budget revenues.

SEPLAT Keeps The Rest of Africa on Waiting List – Roger Brown

Section: Farm in, Farm Out · August 23, 2025 · No comments |

By Oluwatobi Odeyinka

Is Seplat Energy likely to be caught foraging for hydrocarbon in the frontiers of Angola or Tanzania?

Roger Brown, the Chief Executive Officer of Seplat Energy Ltd, reiterated the company’s commitment to developing its Nigerian assets even though it is interested in expanding its portfolio beyond the country.

Mr Brown was a panellist at the 50th anniversary of the National Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE) in Lagos recently.

Austin Avuru, Chair of the event’s panel session, who himself was Seplat’s co-founder, posed the question: “Roger, try and talk us through the possibility of a Nigerian independent being an African champion. Are you likely to be found in Angola, for instance, or Tanzania in the future as a Nigerian company?”

Seplat’s portfolio spreads across the oil and gas value chain in Nigeria, with its recent acquisition of Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited expanding its positions by four more acreages, including Oil Mining Leases (OMLs) 67, 68, 70, and 104, in the south east offshore Niger Delta, as well as operating stakes in the Qua Iboe and the Bonny River terminals.

“When the “subsurface guys go to Chad, Congo, or any other place in Africa, they say ‘that’s nice, but can we go back to Nigeria, please”

Brown responded that the 16 year old company was focused on fully developing these new assets and having its feet solid on the ground in Nigeria before expanding to other African countries.

“It’s funny, when you announce a deal, all the questions you get are when you’re going to close the deal. The day you close the deal, the next question you get, when’s the next deal?

“When you go to the buffet, and you fill your plate, and you’ve got lots of food on your plate. It’s really important to eat it before you go back to the buffet and get some more. It’s so important to do that. It’s a dual track. You’ve got to deliver on what you have. And we all have massive investment for integrity, maintenance, building capacity.

“We need to drill. We’re going to do some exploration. There’s lots of stuff we can do in our existing portfolio.”

Seplat also plays a significant role in Nigeria’s gas-to-power infrastructure, supplying over 300Million standard cubic feet of gas per day from the Oben gas processing plant in OML 4 in the western Niger Delta, mostly to power plants as well as completing the 300MMscf/d ANOH gas plant in OML 53 in the eastern Niger Delta, ready for similar purpose.

Brown added that the subsurface in Nigeria is better than many other African countries and when the “subsurface guys go to Chad, Congo, or any other place in Africa, they say ‘that’s nice, but can we go back to Nigeria, please?”

He stressed that if the company would be expanding its portfolio in the continent, it would be additive and considerably big, “there is no point doing something small.”