In November 2022, Nigeria’s daily crude oil production output grew slightly to a daily average of 1.41 million barrels.
This is according to statistics issued yesterday by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission.
According to the data on the commission’s website, crude oil volumes for November 2022 were 1,185,604, with blended condensates at 40,691 and unblended condensates at 187,799, totaling 1,414,093.
Meanwhile, crude oil volumes were 1,014,485, blended condensates were 28,232, and unblended condensates were 187,655, totaling 1,230,372 barrels per day in October 2022.
The fight against crude oil theft: While the NUPRC data is limited, it reveals that Nigeria is growing its crude oil production capability. This could be attributed to the government’s attempts to curb oil theft.
Bala Wunti, Chief Upstream Investment Officer at NNPC Upstream Investment Management Services (NUIMS), told Arise TV news anchors earlier this week that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited and security operatives are commencing a battle against crude oil theft offenders. He claims that several of these perpetrators are already in court, facing prosecution.
He claims that out of the 763 illicit refineries, 638 have been successfully eliminated by the NNPC and its security partners. Wunti claimed that although work is still being done to find new illegal refineries, 70% of illegal refineries have already been rendered inoperable. Bala Wunti said during the 11th Practical Nigerian Content Forum on December 6 that Nigeria’s oil production as of December 6 is 1.59 million barrels per day.