The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, has announced the abolition of signature bonus payment to the Federal Government by new investors in the oil and gas sector.
Signature Bonus is a single, non-recoverable lump sum payment by the license holder to the government upon the granting of a petroleum exploration license.
Lokpobiri stated this in an interview on the sidelines of the 2024 OTC which opened in Houston, Texas, yesterday. According to the Minister, over the years, the payment of signature bonuses remained a huge bottleneck for investors.
Stakeholders had explained that globally, payable signature bonus by awardees of an oil block or marginal field rank highest in Nigeria. He added that on many occasions, the huge amount involved in payment of signature bonus was a setback for investors. But to ensure that investors have a soft landing, he said such payments would now be tied to immediate exploration and production activities by the new entrants. ‘’Rather than pay such monies into the coffers of the Federal Government, the investor must now be able to prove to us that they have the funds required to move into exploration.”
