Nigeria’s 2022 oil production flowed at 1.3 mbd

Sopuruchi Onwuka

Nigeria’s average daily petroleum liquids output fell to 20-year low in 2022 when the flow of new investments in the petroleum industry also fell to record lows following disagreements over fiscal terms.

According to global industry statistics compiled by the American Energy Information Administration (EIA), Nigeria pumped crude oil and lease condensate in the year at daily average of 1.316 million barrels major as multinational oil firms intensified investment recovery from traditional onshore and conventional offshore terrains instead of new investments.

The Oracle Today reports that the 2022 average daily crude oil output by the country is about 50 percent fall from the 2.627 percent average daily production the EIA recorded for the country in 2005. It also showed a consistent pattern of output cuts from 2015 when the former President Muhammadu Buhari took over the administration of the federal government and also served as the Minister of Petroleum Resources.

Before 2015, the data showed, Nigeria’s oil production had fluctuated slightly according to the volume of investments and related level of oilfield activity, indicating the continued rise in production until 2005 when major deepwater field development projects started coming online.

Nigeria’s upstream petroleum liquids production breached the 2.001 million barrels per day (bpd) mark in 1996 and grew to 2.165 in 2000, the EIA’s historical production figures showed.

However, after the peak of 2.627 mbd  in 2005, output fluctuated to 2.408 mbd in 2010 from where it gradually descended to 1.775 mbd in 2020. It then further plummeted to 1.541 mbd in 2021 before settling at 1.316 mbd in 2022.

The data which focused on the production performance of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), showed that Nigeria still maintained a sixth position in the group’s output chart and also the group’s lead producer from Africa.

The chart showed similar patterns of unsteady production in politically unstable OPEC members in the two-decade period when output grew strong in the Middle East and slumped Africa and South America.

Following Nigeria in production performance in the year was Algeria with daily liquids output of 1.212 barrels. Angola followed with 1.166 mbd to become Africa’s third biggest producer in the year. Libya came with 1.058 mbd ahead of Congo Brazzaville which posted just 0.273 mbd.

Other African members of OPEC captured in the analysis showed low production capacity, with Gabon posting 0.196 mbd and Equatorial Guinea indicating production rate of 0.118 mbd.

South American member with robust reserves sadly posted surprising production performance of 0.704 mbd.

Total African contribution to the performance of OPEC in 2022 stood at 5.339 mbd. And when Venezuela is added, the total OPEC production outside the Middle East was 6.043 mbd.

Thus, the chart clearly indicated that OPEC members from the Middle East formed the global oil supply factors in 2022 with Saudi Arabia alone eclipsing total production from Africa with its daily output of 10.644 mbd in the year.

Iraq which is still smarting from long wars with both Iran and Islamic State and Syria came strong with production performance of 4.471 mbd in 2022; followed closely by the United Arab Emirates which posted daily output of 3.468 in the year.

Iran which is struggling with trade sanctions from the United States came into the picture with bullish output of 3.293 mbd in the year. Kuwait happened into the date with production of 2.826 mbd to round off total OPEC production rate in the year with 30.745 mbd.

The Oracle Today reports that Nigeria leads Africa’s production at OPEC. The country had projected an aspiration of 4.0 mbd by 2007. The target was shifted to 2010, 2020 and now indefinitely as production has in fact continued to plummet with stalled investments, insecurity, divestments and fiscal disputes between government and investors.

The EIA recorded that Nigeria produced about 1.5 mbd in crude oil and lease condensate in 2021, nearly a 37% decline from the country’s production average in 2012.

It also noted that Nigeria’s hydrocarbon production declined in recent years because of a number of factors, such as lower international investor interest in upstream development, oil theft and smuggling, maturing fields, aging and poorly maintained infrastructure, disruptions and forced shut-ins stemming from security-related incidents at production sites or transport facilities.