Increased crude production by Iran, Nigeria and Iraq, inspired a boost in the August production by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, the group said.
Oil production from the 13 members of the organisation, OPEC, averaged 27.45 million barrels per day (mb/d) in August 2023, higher by 113 thousand barrels per day (tb/d) on a month-on-month, OPEC said in its Monthly Oil Market Report released Tuesday.
The report also noted that crude oil production in Saudi Arabia, Angola and Venezuela declined in the same month.
Nigeria’s crude oil production climbed to 1,269 million barrels per day, from 1,171 million in July 2023, while Angola’s output fell 60,000 bpd to 1.155 million barrels a day from 1,175 in July, an OPEC survey, which cites secondary data sources, said.
However, according to the oil cartel’s direct communication data, Nigeria’s crude oil production climbed to 1,181 million barrels per day, from 1,081 million in July 2023.
OPEC indicated it gets its crude oil production figures mainly from two sources, either as direct communication by member countries or by information released by secondary energy intelligence platforms.
Nigeria’s August crude production was 98,000 barrels higher than its July production figure as the country continues to recover from a heavily disrupted crude sector plagued by oil theft and pipeline vandalism.
Over the years, crude theft and pipeline vandalism and its negative impact on the country’s economy have been a source of concern to the Nigerian government.
In a bid to curb crude theft, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) launched an application in August last year to monitor the incidence of theft and vandalism.
The NNPCL also awarded a multibillion naira pipeline surveillance procurement to a former leader of the Movement for the Emancipation of Niger Delta, Government Ekpemupolo.
Earlier in July, the Defence Headquarters said troops of the armed forces have, in the last three weeks, discovered and destroyed 30 illegal refining sites and 125 storage tanks in various operations in the South-south.
Abdullahi Ibrahim, a brigadier general, who spoke on behalf of the Director, of Defence Media Operations, at the bi-weekly media briefing on the operations of the armed forces said 227 ovens, 11 dugout pits and 21 wooden boats were also destroyed by troops of Operation DELTA SAFE while conducting Operation OCTOPUS GRIP.
He said troops also recovered 1,675,700 litres of crude oil, 74,500 litres of Automotive Gas Oil, ten vehicles, 20 motorcycles, eight weapons and 330 assorted ammunition during the operation.
Source- Premium Times Newspaper.