The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has opened discussions with Indonesia on petroleum investments even as the Indonesian national oil company Pertamina signaled an interest in the upcoming 2026 licensing round.
This was the outcome of a recent meeting between theCommission Chief Executive, NUPRC, Mrs. Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, and Indonesia's Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Arif Havas Oegroseno; and Toriq Abdat, the Vice President for upstream business development at Pertamina.
Eyesan said the two countries come to the table with similar priorities which are energy security, resource utilization and attracting investments.
The talks come as both countries work to increase production. Nigeria currently produces approximately 1.7 million barrels of oil per day and is targeting 3 million by 2030 while Indonesia produces roughly 600,000 barrels daily and seeks to hit 2.3 million by 2030, a target it says it cannot meet 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, adding, “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 theMiddle East, Iraq and Nigeria.”
Abdat said Pertamina is looking for producing assets or projects close to 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. Producing assets, or near production, or before FID.” "Now we are looking at how we can help you reach the 3 million, and also help us provide more energy for our own consumption."
Responding to Abdat, Eyesan said Nigeria’s own targets are no less demanding.
“We have very aggressive targets, 3 million barrels per day by 2030, and today we are at 1.6, 1.7” she said. “We are committed to the objective and the licensing round is one of the strategies we are utilizing.”
According to the NUPRC boss, licensing rounds in Nigeria have become a recurring exercise rather than an occasional one, institutionalised under the Petroleum Industry Act 2021. The last commercial bid conference held in July with 50 assets on offer and 37 awarded.
Eyesan said Nigeria's fiscal terms have been reset in direct response to competition for the same pool of capital.
She noted that Nigeria had reduced entry barriers including signature bonuses in order to incentivise investments.
The Indonesian delegation noted that it is exploring other opportunities outside crude oil and gas.
The national oil company is building a fertiliser plant to reduce its dependence on Middle Eastern supply, and disruptions during the current global conflict.
Food security relates to oil and gas because phosphate and the elements that make fertilizer, the Indonesian delegation said.
Nigeria, for its part, is diversifying its own phosphate sourcing, including a long-term transatlantic pipeline project with Morocco to serve West Africa. Nigeria has also simplified fertiliser distribution rules that once ran to about 160 layers of regulation.
Both sides thus agreed to keep the commercial and diplomatic tracks running in parallel.
Eniola Akinkuotu
Head, Corporate Communications and Media
September 20, 2026