Nigeria’s crude oil production surges to 1.8 million barrels per day

Nigeria’s crude oil output has reached 1.8 million barrels per day (mbpd), marking a significant boost driven by a collaborative effort between the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) and its partners.

The surge aligns with the production targets set by President Bola Tinubu, with projections indicating potential output growth to 2 million barrels per day by year-end.

Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, announced the milestone in Abuja on Thursday.

He noted that NNPC Ltd and its partners had achieved the increase alongside a production of 7.4 standard cubic feet per day (scfd) of gas.

Lokpobiri praised the progress, crediting it to directives from President Tinubu.

“This achievement reflects the hard work of a dedicated team,” he said, pledging continued government support to further enhance production levels.

NNPC Group CEO Mele Kyari lauded the production team for their relentless drive in revitalizing output.

“The team has done an outstanding job in not only recovering production levels but also escalating output to meet both short-term and long-term expectations for our stakeholders,” Kyari said, highlighting directives from the president, the minister, and the board as guiding forces.

Lawal Musa, Chief Coordinator of the Production War Room and Senior Adviser to the NNPC CEO, elaborated on efforts that led to the production surge.

He attributed the success to collaboration among joint venture partners, production sharing contract stakeholders, the office of the National Security Adviser, and both public and private security agencies.

Musa detailed that when the Production War Room was established on June 25, 2024, output stood at 1.43 mbpd.

Thanks to intensified efforts, production climbed to 1.7 mbpd by August and reached 1.808 mbpd by November.

“With continued momentum and active cooperation from all stakeholders, particularly in security, we remain optimistic about achieving a 2 million barrels per day target by year’s end,” Musa remarked, according to local media.