Nigeria’s crude oil production for March dropped to 1.23 million barrels daily according to latest data from the OPEC’s monthly oil market report for March.
This was a 92,000 barrel drop from the 1.32 million daily production in February 2024.
However, according to secondary sources, the country’s crude oil production for March stood at 1.39 million barrels daily- marking a decline of 38,000 daily from 1.43 million barrels.
The country’s crude oil production in March was the lowest this year and falls below the benchmark crude oil production of 1.78 million barrels daily in the 2024 budget.
Furthermore, the figure also displaced Nigeria as the biggest oil producer in Africa as Libya produced an average higher figure of 1.236 million bpd- a 5,000 barrels difference. This makes Libya the largest oil producer in Africa for March 2024.
The drop in crude oil production means lower receipts from oil sales and reduced foreign exchange for the federal government.
Production among OPEC member countries
According to the report, Saudi Arabia maintained its position as the biggest oil producer among OPEC member countries with average daily production of 8.97 million bpd- a drop of 39,000 barrels. The Kingdom was followed by Iraq with 3.9 million bpd and the United Arab Emirates with 2.91 million barrels daily.
Oil prices in March
In March, the value of the OPEC Reference Basket (ORB) rose by $2.99, or 3.7% month-on-month, reaching an average of $84.22 per barrel. Similarly, oil futures prices also saw an increase.
The front-month contract for ICE Brent increased by $2.95, or 3.6% month-on-month, to $84.67 per barrel, while the front-month contract for NYMEX WTI climbed by $3.80, or 5.0% month-on-month, averaging $80.41 per barrel.
Following the cartels decision to leave production quota unchanged, oil price jumped to around $90 dollars per barrel for brent crude.