Chinwe Odita
Worried by the need to grow Nigeria’s dwindling hydrocarbon reserves while guaranteeing energy security, petroleum industry stakeholders on Wednesday called for renewed exploration, stronger indigenous capacity and greater deployment of adaptive technology in the country’s upstream sector.
The stakeholders spoke at the pre-conference workshop of the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE) held at Eko Hotel & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.
The president, Mrs Olajumoke Ajayi said in her opening address that Nigeria’s economic history is an interesting case study. “Gone are the days when cash crops such as cocoa, groundnuts, and palm produce dominated Nigeria’s export earnings and provided livelihoods for many citizens.
Today, petroleum has taken the centre stage, serving as a major source of government revenue, foreign exchange earnings, and industrial development.”
The workshop, with the theme, “Navigating Nigeria’s Upstream Future: Exploration and Development Approaches versus Energy Security Demand,” brought together petroleum professionals and industry players to examine the challenges confronting exploration, field development and production in Nigeria.
The event is part of activities preceding NAPE’s 44th Annual International Conference and Exhibition, scheduled for November 8 to 12 at the same venue.
The main conference is themed “Unlocking More Barrels: Driving Reserves Growth through Exploration, Local Capabilities, & Adaptive Technology.”
With Nigeria under increasing pressure to raise crude oil production, attract fresh investment and replenish reserves, participants at the workshop stressed the importance of moving beyond discussions to concrete strategies capable of unlocking new opportunities across the upstream value chain.
A major highlight of the workshop was an industry symposium organised by Energia Limited as part of activities marking its 25th anniversary.
The symposium, titled “Shaping Tomorrow’s Energy: The Indigenous Operator’s Role in Nigeria’s Upstream Future,” featured Energia’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Oladimeji Bashorun, as the theme speaker.
The session examined the growing role of indigenous operators in Nigeria’s upstream industry, drawing from Energia’s experience in production growth, field development, infrastructure development and the strengthening of technical capabilities.
For an industry grappling with declining investment in some areas, asset divestments by international oil companies and the urgent need to increase production, the growing prominence of indigenous operators has assumed greater significance.
Industry observers have increasingly identified local capacity as a critical component of Nigeria’s strategy to sustain production and maximise value from its petroleum resources.
NAPE has similarly placed exploration and reserves growth at the centre of its 2026 industry agenda, with the association stressing the need for renewed exploration campaigns and the deployment of technologies suited to Nigeria’s operating environment.
The association’s emphasis on adaptive technology also reflects the changing economics of petroleum exploration, where operators are under pressure to reduce costs, improve recovery and make marginal and technically challenging assets commercially viable.
At the workshop, attention was therefore focused not only on finding more oil and gas but also on developing the technical, financial and human capacity required to efficiently produce what is already available.
The discussions further underscored the importance of indigenous participation at a time when the ownership and operation of several Nigerian oil and gas assets are undergoing significant changes.
Energia, which was founded in 2001, has positioned its 25th anniversary as an opportunity to reflect on the evolution of indigenous participation in the upstream sector and the capabilities required to compete in the industry’s next phase.
The workshop consequently provided a platform for stakeholders to interrogate how Nigeria can balance its immediate energy requirements with the long-term imperative of replacing produced reserves.
Beyond crude oil production, the discussions also touched on the broader competitiveness of Nigeria’s petroleum industry, including infrastructure, technology, technical expertise and investment.
The outcome of the workshop is expected to feed into broader conversations at the NAPE annual conference, which will attract policymakers, geoscientists, petroleum professionals, investors, technology providers and other industry stakeholders.
NAPE describes itself as the largest professional association of geoscientists and related professionals in Nigeria, with a membership base exceeding 10,000 professionals and more than 1,000 organisations.
As the country seeks to reverse declining reserves and strengthen its position in the global energy market, the message emerging from the workshop was clear:
Nigeria cannot afford to produce its existing reserves without simultaneously investing in exploration, technology and the indigenous expertise needed to discover and develop the barrels of tomorrow.
