Nigeria’s laying regulatory model for Africa’s petroleum industry _Komolafe

Sopuruchi Onwuka

Governments of petroleum producing countries in Africa may need to adopt the well conceived and robustly developed regulatory templates that are already in operation in Nigeria as the continent works towards harmonized standards and cross border infrastructure build out.

The Commission Chief Executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Engr Gbenga Komlafe, who was speaking at a panel debate on dismantling barriers to regional integration, declared that the need for standardized regulations has been significantly solved by Nigeria’s willingness to share its industry regulatory model with other African countries.

The Oracle reports that there have been heightened conversations around enhanced regional integration, trade and flow of services across African countries under the unfolding Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement (ACFTA) by dismantling all barriers to internal continental collaboration.

Oil producers in the continent also stand jointly in defiance of the prevailing climate action agenda which has frozen multilateral funding windows to new petroleum development at a time most countries of Africa are still energy poor and citizens do not have access to modern energy.   

In speaking at the 2025 edition of the Nigeria Oil and Gas (NOG) Energy Week in Abuja, Engr Komolafe restated Nigeria’s strategic role in regional energy cooperation, noting that the country accounts for nearly 30% of Africa’s oil reserves and 33% of its gas.

He pointed at the country’s robust regulatory frameworks which, according to him, have been enhanced with executive orders churned out by incumbent President Bola Tinubu to expand local capacity for realizing community, industry and national economic objectives.

 “Our host community development model is a success, fostering stability in oil-producing regions and serving as a blueprint for others,” Komolafe said.

He highlighted NUPRC’s 17 forward-looking regulations and new frameworks for deepwater development, alongside a production optimization program built on inter-agency and operator collaboration.

Komolafe said President Tinubu’s recent Executive Order, which enhances local content laws by prioritizing human capacity development, helped in boosting investor confidence.

“International oil companies now recognize Nigeria’s robust local expertise, making it a key investment draw. We’re exporting our local content model to other African nations,” he said.

The Authority Chief Executive (ACE) of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Engr. Farouk Ahmed, pointed at the importance of joint infrastructure, uniform tariffs, and coordinated regulations for true economic integration of Africa.

He also highlighted NMDPRA’s efforts to streamline operations through a one-stop shop and ongoing stakeholder engagement.

Engr Ahmed’s presentation at the event was delivered by Prof. Zainab Gobir who also pointed at the system of inter-agency collaboration in the country as a model for the continent.

“We collaborate closely with NCDMB to strengthen local content, ensuring regulations support fair participation,” he declared at the event.

He stated the need for regulators to uphold industry sustainability commitments and support each other in meeting them,” Ahmed said.

On regulatory standards for the continent, Engr Ahmed cited the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) as a model, particularly its Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund, designed to de-risk investments in gas and infrastructure projects.

Earlier in presentation at the event, Deputy Chief Executive of the Petroleum Commission of Ghana, Nasir Alfa Mohamed, noted that African nations have long looked to Nigeria for energy sector leadership, and called for dismantling barriers to regional integration and advocated for standardized regulations.

“A Ghanaian company should be able to compete for contracts in Nigeria based solely on merit,” Mohamed said. “We need joint regulatory bodies, mutual recognition of standards, and robust support for platforms like the African Oil Forum.”

Mohamed also highlighted Ghana’s growing partnerships with Nigeria and others, including a memorandum of understanding with Uganda. He noted that Ghana was currently the only African nation participating in the International Upstream Forum.