From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
Nigeria’s average daily crude oil production in June rose marginally to 1.276 million barrels, the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has declared in its monthly oil market report for June 2024,
This represents an increase of just 25, 000 barrels daily from 1.251 million barrels p/d recorded in the previous month.
The data on Nigeria’s crude oil production was obtained from direct communication with authorities in Nigeria.
Meanwhile, secondary sources show that Nigeria’s average daily crude oil production for the month was 1.362 million barrels per day, indicating a decrease of 10, 000 barrels per day compared to May’s production of 1.372 million barrels per day.
Despite this decline, Nigeria retained its position as Africa’s largest oil producer. Libya followed closely with a production of 1.2 million barrels per day in June.
Nigeria’s average crude oil production of 1.27 million barrels per day in June shows a continued shortfall throughout the first half of 2024. This figure consistently falls below both Nigeria’s OPEC production quota of 1.5 million barrels per day and its budgetary target of 1.78 million barrels per day.
The persistent inability to meet these production targets poses significant challenges to President Tinubu’s administration in terms of revenue generation and budgetary planning.
Heineken Lokpobiri, the Minister of Petroleum Resources, previously announced Nigeria’s target of achieving two million barrels of daily oil production starting next year. However, the feasibility of this goal remains uncertain amidst current challenges. Issues such as insecurity, insufficient investment, the departure of International Oil Companies (IOCs), and ongoing delays in approving oil asset transfers continue to hamper the oil sector’s prospects. These factors collectively contribute to a bleak outlook for reaching the ambitious production target set by the Minister.
Earlier this month, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited reaffirmed its dedication to tackling the obstacles affecting crude oil production in Nigeria, which has remained stagnant over the past five months. Mele Kyari, the Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC, highlighted this commitment during his keynote address at the opening ceremony of the 23rd edition of the Nigeria Oil & Gas Conference and Exhibition (NOG Energy Week) held in Abuja last week.
“We have decided to stop the debate. We have declared war on the challenges affecting our crude oil production. War means war. We have the right tools. We know what to fight. We know what we have to do at the level of assets. We have engaged our partners. And we will work together to improve the situation,” the GCEO said.
According to Mele Kyari, a detailed analysis of assets has shown that Nigeria has the capacity to produce two million barrels of crude oil per day without needing to deploy new rigs. However, the primary barrier to achieving this goal lies in the industry’s collective inability to act promptly.
Kyari stated that addressing these challenges effectively requires concerted efforts from NNPC Ltd. and its partners. He referred to this effort as a “war” aimed at swiftly resolving issues hindering efficient production.