Following the passing into law of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), which was signed into law by President Buhari on 16 August 2021, the Department for Petroleum Resources (DPR) will now be replaced by a new agency.  Together with the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), and the Petroleum Equalisation Fund (PEF), the DPR has been scrapped to be replaced by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NPRA), and the Nigerian Upstream Regulatory Commission (NURC).

These fundamental changes to the regulatory structures that govern the Nigerian oil sector are of specific interest to oil and gas operators, service companies, and security providers that provide services to those companies.   In the security sector, service providers also require permits from the DPR to deliver services.  These permits are a legal requirement to operate legitimately and without them, they cannot legally support oil and gas sector clients.

There has been some speculation as to what will happen to these permits when the DPR ceases to function and how oil and gas providers will continue to operate during and after the transition.  Received wisdom from within the DPR indicates that existing permits will remain valid until their projected expiry date.  At that point, they will be replaced with new permits issued by the successor organisation.

The process for this will remain an online application and submission of supporting documentation.  Fees will also be paid online.  If this transition goes according to plan, there should be no interruption to service delivery by security providers.   Arete will continue to monitor the situation closely and keep all our clients informed of any changes in the projected transition.

You can read more about the closure here.