The Federal Government has announced a 9.9% increase in Nigeria’s oil production, including condensates, rising to 1.69 million barrels per day in November 2024 from 1.538 mbpd in October.
Data from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, a federal agency, shows liquid crude oil production surged by 11.42%, reaching 1.48 mbpd in November compared to 1.33 mbpd the previous month.
However, these gains remain below Nigeria’s allocated quota set by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries.
Condensate oil production, which is exempt from OPEC quotas, experienced a marginal decline of 0.01%, dropping slightly to 204,828 barrels per day in November from 204,806 barrels per day in October.
Despite these improvements, the country’s output continues to lag behind the 2024 budget benchmark of 1.78 mbpd.
This gap persists despite assertions from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited that production has reached 1.8 mbpd.
The figures underscore ongoing hurdles in achieving national production targets while reflecting recent efforts to enhance upstream sector performance.
Addressing Nigeria’s production quota, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, highlighted OPEC’s decision to extend Nigeria’s oil production quota to 1.5 million bpd, aligning with the nation’s output goals.
“For Nigeria, these resolutions align with our 2025 production target of 2.06 million barrels per day, inclusive of condensates, as outlined in the draft 2025 Appropriation Bill,” Lokpobiri stated.
Adding to this momentum, crude oil processing officially began at the Port Harcourt refinery on November 26, boasting a capacity of 60,000 barrels per day.
Meanwhile, OPEC has reaffirmed Nigeria’s position as Africa’s leading oil producer. Its latest monthly report reveals that Nigeria’s oil output rose to 1.48 mbpd in November, up from 1.33 mbpd in October.
The report highlighted Nigeria’s dominance on the continent, surpassing Algeria’s 908,000 bpd and Congo’s 268,000 bpd output.
OPEC noted that its data was sourced directly, with secondary sources confirming a slight increase in Nigeria’s crude production, which reached 1.417 mbpd in November from 1.4 mbpd in October.
“According to secondary sources, total OPEC-12 crude oil production averaged 26.66 mb/d in November 2024, which is 104 tb/d higher, m-o-m,” OPEC stated. “Crude oil output increased mainly in Libya, IR Iran and Nigeria, while production in Iraq, Venezuela, and Kuwait decreased.”
It further reported that non-OPEC DoC crude oil production averaged 14.01 mb/d in November 2024, marking a 219 tb/d month-on-month increase, with notable growth in Kazakhstan and Malaysia.
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission corroborated the improvement, reporting that the country’s crude production climbed to 1.69 mbpd in November from 1.53 mbpd in October.
