The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) records shows that Nigeria was Africa’s top crude oil producer for October 2023.
The monthly report released on Monday, also gave oil production figures aside from condensate production from the top four oil producers in Africa as Nigeria – 1.35 million barrels per day; Libya – 1.18 million barrels per day; Angola – 1.14 million barrels per day; and Algeria – 961,000 barrels per day.
Total OPEC-13 crude oil production averaged 27.90 million barrels per day in October 2023, higher by 80 thousand barrels per day month-on-month.
The report showed that crude oil output increased mainly in Angola, Iran and Nigeria, while production in Libya, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait decreased.
The world’s forecast for oil demand growth in 2023 also witnessed a slight increase, now standing at 2.5 million barrels per day.
The report however showed that there was a recent decline in oil prices, a situation primarily attributed to significant reductions in net long positions by financial market speculators throughout October.
The OPEC report further shed light on Nigeria’s escalating inflationary pressure, primarily stemming from the removal of petrol subsidies and the devaluation of the naira, a situation it saidresulted in a notable acceleration in the pace of inflation, with the rate spiking to 26.7 per cent in September, a significant rise from August’s 25.8 per cent.
According to the OPEC report, the demand for OPEC crude in 2023 has held steady at 29.1 million barrels per day, showing a modest increase of 0.6 mb/d compared to 2022.
It further said in the first quarter of 2023, OPEC crude production reached 28.8 mb/d, surpassing demand by 0.4 mb/d. Moving to the second quarter, OPEC crude production slightly decreased to 28.3 mb/d, falling below demand by 0.1 mb/d.
The third quarter witnessed a more substantial reduction, with OPEC crude production averaging 27.6 mb/d, lagging demand by 1.0 mb/d.
Looking ahead to 2024, the demand for OPEC crude remains unchanged at 29.9 mb/d, indicating a rise of 0.8 mb/d compared to the estimated 2023 level.
The report also pointed out a development regarding petrol exports from Europe to West Africa, saying that following the removal of petrol subsidies in Nigeria, these exports reportedly declined by approximately 28%.
The decline was attributed not only to reduced refinery output during maintenance, but also to a notable drop in demand, leading to substantial stock increases in the Atlantic Basin.
