ERHC Energy Inc (ERHE)

[RUBY1100]

No moves on Nigeria licensing

By Upstream staff

HOPES that Nigeria would unveil its latest licensing round at the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists conference in Abuja this week were dashed when senior industry officials, including Oil Minister Edmund Daukoru and Tony Chukwueke, the director of the Department of Petroleum Resources, stayed away from the event, writes Barry Morgan.
The delay came amid controversy over the recent award of offshore block OPL-291 to previously unknown local independent Starcrest, which has since sold a major interest in the block to Canadian-registered Swiss explorer Addax Petroleum.

The award added to concerns that high-profile discretionary awards of acreage are still occurring despite remonstrations by the Department of Petroleum Resources that all acreage should be transparently subject to open tendering.

Moves to hold back choice blocks from the upcoming round originally scheduled for last month but now delayed, according to some sources until at least Decemberhave further damaged industry confidence.


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17 November 2006 00:01 GMT | last updated: 17 November 2006 00:01