The target of the Federal Government is to increase Nigeria’s oil reserves from 36.91 billion barrels to 50 billion barrels in the short to medium term, the Department of Petroleum Resources announced on Monday.

Director/Chief Executive, DPR, Sarki Auwalu, announced this during a workshop with industry partners on Monday.

He also announced that the regulator would inaugurate annual awards for companies, projects or individuals who add value to the Nigerian oil sector through enhanced recovery of the country’s oil and gas resources.

Auwalu in a statement issued by the Head of Public Affairs, DPR, Paul OSU, said the Improved Oil Recovery/Enhanced Oil Recovery Awards were part of deliberate engagements with industry partners to achieve maximum economic recovery strategies for Nigeria.

Auwalu noted that the Federal Government, through the MER strategies, was also targeting to increase Nigeria’s proven gas reserves from 206.53 trillion cubic feet to 250TCF.

According to him, companies, individuals, fields, research institutions and technologies were eligible for the IOR/EOR awards.

He said the industry initiative was one of the outcomes of the work of the National Oil and Gas Excellence Centre, Lagos inaugurated in January by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.).