Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has announced that the nation’s oil production rig count has risen significantly from 8 in 2021 to 46 in July 2025.
This growth is attributed to the enactment of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) in 2021 and the commission’s commitment to increasing oil production in the country.
The NUPRC Chief Executive, Mr. Gbenga Komolafe, disclosed this at the inauguration of a media workshop for journalists covering the oil and gas sector in Abuja.
According to Komolafe, “About 46 active rigs are driving the current oil production in Nigeria.”
He attributed the steady growth in the rig count to the PIA enactment and the commission’s efforts.
Komolafe highlighted the success of the Project One Million Barrels initiative, which aims to increase oil production by one million additional units per year.
“Since the inauguration of the programme in October 2024, about 300,000 barrels of oil per day has been achieved,” he said.
The NUPRC boss commended President Bola Tinubu for Executive Orders 40, 41, and 42, which have encouraged tax incentives, tax remission, and redefined the contracting circle and threshold in the industry.
“These have yielded positive results in terms of the Final Investment Decisions (FIDs) that have attracted huge amounts of money, billions of dollars to the country,” Komolafe said.
Komolafe urged media practitioners to report the commission’s activities professionally, saying, “As a regulator, we are wrongly perceived, often times people fail to understand the difference between a regulator and an operator.”
He added that the commission’s role puts it in a quasi-judicial position, mediating and regulating the industry.
SOURCE: nationalaccordnewspaper.com
