Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, has said Nigeria currently has the capacity to produce more than two million barrels of crude oil per day and would seek an upward review of the country’s production quota at the next meeting of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in November.
Currently, Nigeria’s OPEC quota stands at 1.5 million barrels per day, which the minister said no longer reflects the country’s actual production capacity.
Speaking in a media interview on Tuesday, Lokpobiri said Nigeria would, during the OPEC meeting in November, push for an increase in the production quota to at least two million bpd.
“We will certainly be making a case for a higher quota for Nigeria during the next OPEC meeting. I believe that there’s no better time than now for us to make a strong case for Nigeria’s quota to be reviewed to two million and above,” Lokpobiri stated.
He said the country would make a strong case for upward review of the OPEC quota given the current improvement in oil production, renewed interest of investors in the oil and gas sector and improved regulatory environment.
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Lokpobiri said the 1.5 million barrels per day OPEC quota assigned to Nigeria when he became minister was because the production then was below that figure.
While reviewing Nigeria’s upstream oil performance four years after the Petroleum Industry Act was passed and the establishment of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Lokpobiri noted that the country’s production is currently between 1.7 and 1.8 million barrels per day, including condensates.
“Today, we are producing around 1.7 million barrels daily, including condensates, and we have the capacity to produce above two million barrels per day,” he stated.
According to him, the oil production recovery is due to enhanced security and pipeline integrity across the Niger Delta.
He said improvement in security around oil facilities through a combined effort of security agencies and community collaboration has drastically reduced cases of vandalism and theft, which had crippled Nigeria’s production capacity for many years.
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He also cited an increase in rig count as another key indicator of improvement in upstream activities. He said the rig count, which has risen from about 14 to almost 50 in four years, is expected to rise further by the end of the year.
According to Lokpobiri, the current wave of divestments by big oil companies like Shell, TotalEnergies, and ExxonMobil has created opportunities for competent indigenous operators to invest in the sector.
The minister further stated that Nigeria’s oil industry is now more competitive internationally and that production costs have decreased as a result of President Bola Tinubu’s executive orders.
While acknowledging that the cost of production in the country is still higher than the global average, the minister assured that steps were being taken to ensure it is made more competitive.
“The global average is perhaps $12, but ours is way above that. But that doesn’t mean that we are not taking steps. So, having identified the problem, we are taking steps to ensure that we address that problem,” he said.
Energy Transition Debate
Speaking on the global energy transition agenda, the minister said it means different things to different regions, adding that Africa contributes less than three per cent of global emissions. He stressed that for the continent, it means prioritising energy access first and that it cannot achieve industrialisation without a reliable power supply.
“Right now, our first objective is to use the hydrocarbon resources we have in abundance in Africa, raise the funding we need, and then finance the energy mix,” he stated.
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He expressed doubt about the commitment of industrially advanced countries to the energy transition agenda, adding that nations like the United States are ramping up production and wondered why Africa should stop exploring hydrocarbon resources, something they have in abundance, to rely on renewable energy technologies they don’t currently have.
The minister also commended the establishment of the African Petroleum Regulators Forum (AFRIPERF), which aims to unify Africa’s voice in global energy policy, and urged that the forum should join in the advocacy for Africa to be given special consideration in the issue of energy transition.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist, scholar and analyst of socioeconomic issues in Nigeria and Africa. He is skilled in energy reporting, business and economy, and holds a master's degree in mass communication.
