President Bola Tinubu has issued a directive for all holders of dormant oil assets across Nigeria to immediately reactivate these fields as part of a strategic effort to ramp up the country’s dwindling crude oil production and revenue. The directive was communicated to oil and gas operators by the Minister of State Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, during the 2025 Nigeria Oil and Gas Energy Week in Abuja.
Nigeria has been struggling to meet its crude oil production targets, with output hovering around 1.4 million barrels per day (mbpd), well below the government’s 2025 budget target of 2.1 mbpd based on an oil price of $75 per barrel. Although production improved slightly to 1.63 mbpd in May 2025 from 1.61 mbpd in April, the country remains short of its OPEC quota and domestic goals.
Minister Lokpobiri emphasized that reactivating dormant assets is critical not only for increasing production but also for sustaining investments in capacity building within the sector. He stressed that President Tinubu’s directive is a call to action for all operators to ensure every oil field under their control is active and productive, warning that only serious investors with the capacity to develop Nigeria’s hydrocarbon resources will be allowed access moving forward.
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has identified that over 90 percent of marginal oil fields allocated to investors remain dormant, a legacy of previous awards made without adequate technical and financial vetting. The current administration is focused on reversing this trend by prioritizing investors with strong technical and financial capabilities.
Nigeria’s crude oil reserves stand at an estimated 37.28 billion barrels, including 31.44 billion barrels of proven and probable reserves. However, production has been hampered by pipeline vandalism, theft, and infrastructure challenges. The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) recently reported progress in pipeline availability, with five major crude evacuation pipelines achieving 100 percent availability between May and June 2025, a milestone in efforts to stabilize oil infrastructure.
The government’s renewed focus on reactivating dormant fields, combined with improved pipeline security and new financing opportunities such as the African Energy Bank, is expected to catalyze growth in the oil sector and contribute significantly to Nigeria’s economic recovery.
This initiative aligns with broader national goals to maximize indigenous capacity, increase crude oil output, and enhance revenue generation, thereby strengthening Nigeria’s position as a leading oil producer.