Nigeria saw its crude oil production increasing to 1.782 million bpd in November surpassing that of Angola, thereby regaining its production as Africa’s top oil producer.
The West African country in March lost the top position to Angola when its production fell to 1.677 million barrels per day, compared to Angola’s 1.782 million bpd, thanks to a rise in militant attacks on oil facilities in the Niger Delta, oil-producing region.

According to data from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries in its Monthly Oil Market Report for December, crude oil production from Nigeria was at 1.782 million bpd in November based on direct communication, compared to the 1.39 million bpd recorded in October. Angola on the other hand produced 1.688 million bpd in November, from the 1.507 million bpd in October, when it lost an output of 142,000 bpd.

OPEC said the group’s total production in November averaged 33.87 million bpd, an increase of 150,800 bpd from the previous month. “Crude oil output increased the most in Angola, Nigeria and Libya, while production in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia showed the largest decline,” it said.

The cartel recently agreed to a new production ceiling of 32.5 million bpd from January 1, 2017, a reduction of around 1.2 million bpd from October production levels. Nigeria and Libya were excluded from the agreement as the two countries continue to suffer production losses from militant attacks and political instability.

Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Emmanuel Kachikwu, has said that the country’s output is at 1.9 million bpd with all three of its main fields online and it hopes to increase crude oil production to 2.1 million bpd next month.

Anita Fatunji