Nigeria’s Crude Oil Output Drops to 1.46m bpd in February – OPEC

Confidence UbaniMarch 13, 20251 Mins read73

Nigeria’s crude oil production fell to 1.46 million barrels per day (bpd) in February, a 4.8 per cent drop from 1.53 million bpd in January. This marks the first month-on-month decline in 2025, according to the latest market report from the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), released on Wednesday.

OPEC said the figures were based on direct communication with Nigerian authorities. However, data from secondary sources placed the country’s crude output at 1.56 million bpd, a 2.2 per cent increase from January’s 1.52 million bpd.

Despite the decline, Nigeria remained Africa’s top oil producer. Algeria followed with an output of 912,000 bpd. OPEC noted that total production from its 12 member states averaged 41.01 million bpd in February. While output increased in Nigeria, Iraq, and Iran, it fell in Gabon and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

An official from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), speaking anonymously, linked the decline to operational challenges.

“The decline was majorly due to pipeline maintenance (at one of the segments of Trans Niger pipeline going to Bonny Terminal) and fire outbreak at one of the production evacuation points of NNPC Ltd.”, the source told The Nation.

NUPRC’s February report showed that total daily production – including crude oil and condensates – averaged 1.67 million bpd. This included 1.46 million bpd of crude oil and 206,948 bpd of condensates. The commission stated that crude oil output met 98 per cent of Nigeria’s OPEC quota of 1.5 million bpd.

In January, the country exceeded its quota by 3 per cent, producing 1.73 million bpd. The increase had raised hopes of steady production growth, but the latest figures show that there are still ongoing operational difficulties. OPEC and its allies (OPEC+) have announced plans to increase global oil output in April. It is not clear whether this will affect Nigeria’s production targets in the coming months.