As the world battles a global crude price crash, Nigeria’s average daily crude output has fallen again in March, threatening the nation’s budget.
According to data released by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, the daily crude production figure was an average of 1.40 million barrels per day, down from 1.465 mbpd in February.
The PUNCH reports that in January, crude production grew slightly above the 1.5 mbpd quota allotted to Nigeria by the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.
The January output gave hope to industry players that the country was serious about realising its ambitious 2 mbpd target in 2025.
However, in February, the feat achieved in the first month of the year was eroded as production declined again, and this repeated itself in March, casting doubts on the feasibility of ramping up production to 2 mbpd this year.
Similarly, oil production (crude and condensate) dropped from 1.78 1.78mbpd in January to 1.67 mbpd in February and 1.603 mbpd in March.
