NOCs and IOCs Redefine Upstream Partnership Terms Ahead of Paris Energy Event
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The Invest in African Energy (IAE) 2027 Forum will host an NOC-IOC Roundtable on May 11 in Paris, convening African national oil companies and international oil companies to discuss the commercial terms behind upstream partnerships. Most major African upstream developments are structured as joint ventures or production sharing agreements between the two groups, making the relationship a defining factor in how projects advance to development.
The roundtable comes as African NOCs take on larger roles as investors and operators. In Nigeria, Shell completed the approximately $2.4 billion sale of its onshore subsidiary to Renaissance, a consortium of African energy companies, in March 2025. Shell has since concentrated its Nigerian investment on deepwater and integrated gas, while state-owned NNPC retained its 55% stake in the onshore joint venture now operated by Renaissance.
Fiscal and contract terms between these two kinds of players are also being revisited. Libya’s National Oil Corporation awarded five blocks to companies including Chevron, Eni, QatarEnergy and Repsol in February 2026 in its first licensing round since 2007, signing production sharing agreements with several of the awardees in June. The corporation has said outcomes on drilling commitments and participation stakes will be used to improve terms for future rounds.
On the IAE agenda, the roundtable follows the Transaction Suite, in which African ministries, regulators and NOCs will present acquisition and farm-in opportunities, and precedes an Investor Circle on structuring bankable capex pipelines with sovereign energy masterplans and private capital. Related discussions continue on May 12 and 13 in main-forum sessions on domestic champions in onshore assets and on licensing rounds and frontier acreage.
The placement reflects how closely partnership terms are tied to project finance. Lenders and development finance institutions assess state carry arrangements and cost recovery provisions when evaluating project cash flows and repayment capacity, and alignment between NOCs and their international partners on these points supports a project’s case for financing. The Day 0 roundtable gives both groups a forum to address them ahead of the deal-making sessions over the remaining two days of IAE 2027.
IAE 2027 takes place May 11-13 in Paris. Organized by Energy Capital & Power (ECP), the forum brings together governments, national oil companies, operators and institutional capital to originate, structure and finance energy projects across Africa. Register at www.invest-africa-energy.com.