NIGERIA produced 1.3 million barrels of crude per day in February, according to the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) monthly oil market report (MOMR).
Though the figure was still .5 million bpd shy of the 1.8 million OPEC quota for the country, it has further cemented Nigeria’s position as Africa’s topmost producer, outperforming Angola.
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It would be noted that oil weakened after the report was released, extending an earlier decline. Brent crude, Nigeria’s benchmark, was down by $1 to below $80 a barrel.
Overall, OPEC’s oil production rose in February despite output cuts by the wider OPEC+ group. OPEC stated that its crude oil output in February rose by 117,000 bpd to 28.92 million bpd, helped by a further recovery in Nigeria.
But despite the rise, OPEC is still pumping much less than called for by the OPEC+ agreement, as Nigeria, Angola and other members struggle to reach their targets.
While there was marked improvement in output from Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and Congo, Angola and Iraq mostly underperformed in February, creating a drag on the cartel’s supply for the month.
More so, on OPEC’s forecast for the Nigerian economy, the oil producers’ group expected rising trend in inflation, ongoing external and fiscal pressures, and deteriorating global macroeconomic conditions to lead towards decelerating economic activity in 2023.
Harrison Edeh is a journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting, always determined to drive advocacy for good governance through holding public officials and businesses accountable.