The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has clarified recent reports concerning discrepancies in crude oil production figures, asserting that there is no disparity between the company’s numbers and those provided by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Company (NUPRC).
In a statement released on Monday, November 25, 2024, NNPCL’s Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Olufemi Soneye, emphasized that the difference in reported figures was due to variations in the reporting periods. While NNPCL cited a peak production of 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) for October 2024, the NUPRC reported 1.54 million bpd for September.
Soneye explained, “The NNPCL figure reflects peak production in October 2024, whereas the NUPRC figure represents the average production for September 2024. There is no discrepancy between the figures.”
The clarification came after earlier reports suggested a significant difference between the figures, with NNPCL’s November estimate of 1.8 million bpd being seen as a sharp contrast to NUPRC’s 1.54 million bpd for September.
At the 42nd Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists Annual International Conference & Exhibition in Lagos, NUPRC’s CEO, Gbenga Komolafe, represented by Enorense Amadasu, the Executive Commissioner for Development & Production, confirmed that Nigeria’s total oil output, including condensate, had risen by 16.56% to 1.8 million bpd in October, from 1.54 million bpd in September.
Komolafe noted, “This increase of 253,710 bpd has pushed Nigeria’s oil production beyond the 1.5 million bpd quota set by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).”
NNPCL’s clarification comes as the company targets increasing crude oil production to over 2 million bpd by the end of 2024, working closely with key stakeholders to achieve this ambitious goal.
The clarification of the production figures has been welcomed by the industry as it underscores the cooperative efforts between NNPCL and NUPRC in ensuring accurate and transparent reporting of Nigeria’s oil output.
