Adedapo Adesanya
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has said the nation’s oil reserves as of January 1, 2024, stood at 37.50 billion barrels, 1.2 per cent higher than the 37.046 billion barrels recorded as of May 2022.
This was disclosed during a press conference in Abuja by Mr Gbenga Komolafe, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the commission on Monday.
He also announced the creation of strong policies aimed at improving and optimising oil and gas operations in the country.
According to him, the gas and non-associated gas reserves stand at 102. 59 trillion cubic feet (TCF) and 106.67 TCF respectively, resulting in total gas reserves at 209.26 TCF.
He added that issues related to crude supply regulation and enforcement, are vital in prioritising the supply of feedstock to local refineries and addressing complaints from oil producers and Dangote Refinery within the stipulated period.
The development comes after reports on how the country’s crude oil production dropped in February and March 2024.
The latest Monthly Oil Market Report of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries showed that Nigeria’s crude oil production (excluding condensates) witnessed the second consecutive monthly decline since the beginning of this year, as it dropped to 1.231 million barrels per day in March, from 1.322 million barrels per day of crude in February this year.
Quoting direct communication from Nigeria, OPEC said the drop in production represented a plunge of 91,000 barrels per day, in contrast to data from Platts which put Nigeria’s Oil production at 1.45 million barrels per day.
