Market News

BY  Success Nwogu

Democracy insights

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) in a recent statement by the Commission Chief Executive, Mrs. Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, had announced that Nigeria’s total oil and condensate reserves stood at 37.01 billion barrels as of January 1, 2026, down slightly from 37.28 billion barrels in 2025.

The statement read: 2P Crude Oil and Condensate reserves stand at 31.09 billion barrels and 5.92 billion barrels, respectively, amounting to a total of 37.01billion barrels.

The Reserves Life Index is 59 Years for Oil. The reason for the slight change in 1.1.2026 oil and condensate reserves by 0.74 per cent is attributable to production in 2025 and reserves update due to field performance and technical evaluation based on subsurface studies.

Recall that as of January 1, 2024, the combined reserves of Crude Oil and condensate reached 37.50 billion barrels. The Crude Oil and condensate were recorded at 31.56 billion barrels and 5.94 billion barrels, respectively.

Nwachukwu, a retired Comptroller, Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), also lamented that Nigeria’s oil sector faced a quiet but critical warning sign. He stated that while the decline may appear marginal, it reflected a deeper structural issue that Nigeria is not replacing produced reserves fast enough with new discoveries or enhanced recovery.

According to him, the question is no longer whether Nigeria has oil—it does—but whether it can technically sustain and grow its reserves base.

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Adducing for the nation’s declining reserves, he stated that oil reserves typically fall when, production outpaces new discoveries; mature fields are depleted without enhanced recovery; exploration activities slow down and reservoir management is inefficient. He emphatically said that in Nigeria’s case, all four factors are at play.

He said that for Nigeria to technically increase its oil reserves, the country must in addition, expand deepwater and ultra-deepwater exploration. He opined that Nigeria’s shallow water fields are largely mature, adding that the future lies offshore.

According to him, the technical focus should be 3D and 4D seismic imaging; deepwater drilling technologies; subsea production systems and that deepwater basins remain under-explored relative to their potential. He said that the impact could be that new discoveries in offshore basins can significantly expand proven reserves and offset depletion from older fields.