Market News

Nigeria sustained its compliance with the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) crude oil production quota for the fifth consecutive month in September, with output averaging 1.53 million barrels per day (bpd).

Data from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) showed that crude oil production, excluding condensates, stood at 1.53 million barrels per day in September, representing 102 per cent of Nigeria’s OPEC quota of 1.5 million barrels per day.

The latest figures indicate that Nigeria maintained production above its assigned quota for five consecutive months, despite persistent challenges in the country’s oil sector.

Crude oil output stood at 1.53 million barrels per day in May, rose to 1.55 million in June, and declined to 1.51 million in July before reaching 1.5 million barrels per day in August.

Production subsequently increased to 1.53 million barrels per day in September.

The commission also reported an increase in Nigeria’s combined crude oil and condensate production, which averaged 1,717,030 barrels per day in September, representing a 2.34 per cent increase over the previous month.

Daily production peaked at 1.84 million barrels during the month, while the lowest single-day output was 1.68 million barrels, according to the NUPRC data.

The improved performance was attributed primarily to stable operations across most producing assets and the absence of major pipeline outages during the period.

According to NUPRC, operational stability helped improve production uptime and the efficiency of crude oil evacuation, supporting the sustained increase in output.

It added that the September performance reflected the continued efforts of operators and other industry stakeholders to improve operational efficiency, maintain asset integrity and strengthen production reliability across Nigeria’s upstream petroleum sector.

A breakdown of daily average crude oil and condensate production by terminal showed that Forcados Terminal recorded the highest output at 320,320 barrels per day, followed by Bonny Terminal with 303,270 barrels per day.

The September figures reinforce Nigeria’s recent production recovery, with the country maintaining crude oil output at or above its OPEC quota since May.