Nigeria emerges as OPEC's top performer as oil production hit 1.6 million barrels daily in March

According to a Reuters survey in March 2023, Nigeria's performance surpassed other Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) members.

The survey indicated that Nigeria's daily oil production increased by 150,000 barrels per day (bpd) to reach 1.6 million barrels daily.

The survey noted Nigeria's oil production increase was the biggest leap among the eight-member oil-producing countries.

While Nigeria's oil production increased, Reuters established a 70,000 bpd drop in the combined OPEC oil output in March.

It added further that output was down more than 700,000 bpd between September 2022 and March 2023.

In arriving at the figures, Reuters said it tracked supply to the market based on shipping data provided by external sources, Refinitiv Eikon flows data, information from companies that track flows such as Petro-Logistics and Kpler, and information provided by sources at oil companies, OPEC, and consultants.

ThisDay reports that the increase comes from the efforts of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and its partners to boost production through increased exploration activities and modern technology.

The corporation has also improved security in the Niger Delta region, where most of Nigeria's oil is produced.

These efforts appear to be paying off, as the country's oil production has steadily increased in recent months.

If the entire 1.6 million barrels produced were sold at the average monthly rate of $86.18 per barrel, the federal government could have earned a minimum of $137.8 million (N63.50 billion) daily, totaling N1.9 trillion for March.

However, a recent report showed that about 20 shipments filled with Nigerian crude are floating on the sea, hunting for buyers.

Meanwhile, a check by Legit.ng shows that oil prices, specifically Brent crude, the benchmark for Nigeria's oil, closed one-week trading at a loss of $81.66 per barrel.

At the start of the week, Sunday, April 16, 2023, oil prices traded at $86.59 per barrel."