Relief As Nigeria Nears OPEC’s Renegotiated 1.5 Million BPD Quota 

Meanwhile, indications emerged at the weekend that Nigeria’s efforts to raise crude oil production continued to yield results during the February circle, with output for the month rising by approximately 60,000bpd during the month.

Although the monthly oil production report by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), usually released in the second week of the month, had yet to be officially announced, a survey of shipping data by Reuters arrived at the additional volume.

“Among those with higher output, the second-biggest gain of 60,000 bpd came from Nigeria, the survey found, as some crude was processed in the new Dangote refinery and exports rose,” it said.

In January, Nigeria’s oil production increased to 1.42 million barrels per day, representing the highest production level since March 2021 when output was about the same 1.42 million bpd.

But with the addition of condensate, the commission said Nigeria’s oil production rose to 1.64 million bpd in January 2024, from 1.55 million bpd in December 2023.

This comes as some relief for Nigeria which is currently in the middle of a foreign exchange shortage crisis, partly occasioned by the country’s prolonged inability to raise oil output from where it gets up to 90 per cent of its FX earnings.

If the 1.42 million bpd is added to the tentative 60,000 bpd shipping data figure, this would total 1.48 million bpd and Nigeria could be just about 20,000 bpd away from meeting the 1.5 million bpd Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) quota for 2024.

But it is still below the daily oil production benchmark of 1.78 million barrels in Nigeria’s 2024 budget, although that also includes condensate, which is exempted from OPEC calculations.

OPEC gave Nigeria the 1.5 million bpd quota last November after intense negotiations that lasted several days, but it was significantly lower than Africa’s largest oil producer had hoped for. Angola left the group after disagreement with OPEC in its own quota at the time.