The Department of Petroleum Resources, DPR, has said it approved 16 new oil and gas fields’ development plan, FDP, in 2017.

According to a document obtained from the agency on Thursday at the ongoing three-day workshop for media practitioners in Lagos, the approval of the new fields will increase the nation’s oil and gas production by 560,463 barrels per day when the fields are fully commissioned.

The DPR is the regulator responsible for ensuring the sustainable development of Nigeria’s oil and gas resources across the value chain for sake of stakeholders through effective regulation and entrenchment of world-class professionalism, accountability and transparency.

In May, the Ministry of Petroleum said it had approved the recommendation by DPR, to revoke three Oil Mining Leases, OMLs, operated by Shell Petroleum Development Company, a local arm of the Royal Dutch Shell, the Anglo-Dutch major, according to Africa Oil and Gas report.

Shell had submitted 17 OMLs for renewal and these are OMLs 11, 17, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 27, 28 31, 32, 33, 35, 36, 43, 45 and 46. The properties were due to expire in 2019.

Three of the acreages – OMLs 31, 33 and 36 – were revoked.

Licenses for 13 of the remaining 14 leases were renewed but the DPR proposed that OML 11 be split into three because it was too large (2,800sq km). Those renewed have a new lease of life for another 20 years.