Minister of State for Petroleum Resources and Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, says Nigeria’s oil production would be 2.2 million barrels a day for the month of February.
Kachikwu, who said the country would keep striving to increase crude oil production to meet local demand and not to essentially sell it in the international market, stated that the figure for February would be unchanged from the month of January.
[Also Read] US cuts Nigerian crude oil imports by 62% in March
“Nigeria will continue to look at the possibility of increasing production, not to sell it, because we have local consumption that is essential for us. Right now, we are not even exporting the quantity that OPEC has given us,” he said, adding that demand from domestic refineries was at least 500,000 barrels of crude oil a day.
Kachikwu also announced Nigeria’s backing of Saudi Arabia and Russia in freezing oil production, while giving Iran and Iraq a way out to regain some of their lost market shares due to sanctions and war.
[Also Read] Oil Output Drops to 1.676 Mmbpd in March
According to Kachikwu, “Countries like Iran and Iraq have been out of the market for a while, and if they are to come back, you shouldn’t freeze them out where they are; you should freeze them at a higher level. By June, we will come very close to tightening the market.”
Saudi Arabia, Russia, Venezuela and Qatar agreed last week to keep production at January levels, as long as others followed suit, in an effort to revive prices from a 12-year low.
[Also Read] Crude Oil Crash: Prepare For Tough Times, NNPC Tells Nigerians
Iran’s production has slumped since international sanctions were imposed on its exports, and Iraq is seeking to rebuild following years of war and under investment.
*Sweetcrude Reports
More Nigeria Oil and Gas Industry News on Orient Energy Review
Be the first to know when we publish an update
