All eyes are fixed on US inflation data as crude oil prices have maintained their hot streak and are set to end this week with a third weekly gain. Surging geopolitical tensions around Israel and Lebanon have overshadowed slackening economic data from the US in May, with every single day this week posting a day-on-day increase and Brent set to finish the week at $87 per barrel.
Nigeria’s crude oil production is expected to rise in the third quarter (Q3) of 2024, as new fields come onstream following the ongoing efforts to revamp existing oil and gas assets to boost output, a report by the Society of Energy Editors (SEE), has revealed.
The Managing Director, ExxonMobil Nigeria, Shane Harris, has declared that the oil major is not leaving Nigeria as claimed in some quarters, particularly after the oil firm’s proposed divestment of a 100 per cent interest in Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited to Seplat Energy Offshore Limited.
Virtually all West African countries, from Mauritania, Cote D’Ivoire, Sierra Leone, Liberia, to Ghana and others, all in the Gulf of Guinea axis, have developed oil and gas explorations. By 2027, all these countries will increase three fold their oil outputs.
TotalEnergies, operator of OML 58 onshore license in Nigeria with a 40% interest, together with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Ltd (NNPCL, 60%), have taken the Final Investment Decision (FID) for the development of the Ubeta gas field.
Nigeria’s total oil production increased marginally by 1.45 per cent in May 2024 to 1.46 million barrels per day, up from 1.44 million barrels per day in April.
The Minister of State Petroleum Resources (Gas), Mr. Ekperikpe Ekpo, has listed adoption of gas technology and innovation, shaping effective policy frameworks, unlocking financing avenues, nurturing capacity building, and cultivating entrepreneurship as measures that would the future Nigeria’s and Africa’s energy landscape.
Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest individual, announced that the supply of diesel from his Dangote Refinery has caused a roughly 60% decrease in the commodity’s price in the local market.
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has revealed that four International Oil Companies (IOCs) are planning to divest from 26 oil blocks in Nigeria. These IOCs, including Nigerian Agip Oil Company, ExxonMobil, EQUINOR, and Shell Petroleum Development Company, aim to transfer the ownership of these blocks to local firms. This move is expected to significantly enhance national oil production and provide substantial benefits to various stakeholders in the energy sector.
There are indications that Nigeria’s 2024 national budget may have come under funding threats following sustained decline in oil price amidst stagnation in crude oil output level.