The international oil and gas company, Zenith Energy, announced the company’s participation in Nigeria’s 2020 bidding round for marginal oil and gas fields organized by the Nigerian Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), according to a press release.

Zenith Energy is seeking to take advantage of the current low oil price environment and Zenith’s CEO, Andrea Cattaneo, said, “Zenith has had ambitions to establish a presence in Nigeria for a number of years.” She added, “Among the 57 Marginal Fields included in the 2020 Bid Round, there are specific assets which are particularly appealing to Zenith, especially on account of their compatibility with our development objectives.”

Zenith Energy also confirmed that it is seeking non-equity development funding. The company is currently in advanced negotiations with an international oil major to provide funding for Zenith’s development objectives in Africa in the form of an offtake agreement. Furthermore, the company is also negotiating with two pan-African financial institutions for a loan.

 The 2020 bid rounds are the first in Nigeria since 2002. The bid rounds have been mired in controversy, however, and have faced legal challenges. The Ororo field, OML 95, and the Dawes Island Marginal Oil Field were among  11 licences revoked by the DPR. Despite this, all 11 were featured in the bidding round.