NIGERIA’s average daily crude oil output fell to 1,453 million barrels per day (bpd) in May, below the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) quota.

OPEC revealed this in its monthly crude oil report released on Monday, June 16.

The oil cartel had, in November 2023, approved a daily production quota of 1.5 million bpd for Nigeria.

But despite a bogus crude oil production benchmark of over 2 million bpd in the 2025 budget, the country has been struggling to meet the OPEC quota and is far from its projected target, a situation many analysts say puts the implementation of the target at risk.

According to the latest OPEC data, Nigeria’s crude oil output fell by 33,000 bpd. That is a decline to 1,453 million bpd in May from 1,486 million in April.

The oil cartel stated that the crude oil production was based on direct communication with the member countries. Nigeria is a member of the OPEC body.

In the data, it noted that Nigeria’s growth outlook remains positive, as inflation eased to 23.7 per cent in April from 24.2 per cent in March, with food price growth cooling marginally as well as core inflation.

It noted also that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has, in the meantime, kept its policy rate unchanged at 27.5 per cent and the cash reserve ratio at 50 per cent during its meeting held on May 19 and 20, citing persistent inflation and currency weakness as key concerns.

However, OPEC pointed out that though inflation had briefly eased following a rebase of the consumer price index in January, it has since remained high.

“With rising fiscal challenges and a likely higher-than-targeted 2025 budget deficit, the central bank’s ability to sustain its strict anti-inflation stance will be tested,” it stated.

It is submitted that despite inflationary pressures and other challenges, businesses remained optimistic about the near-term outlook.