FG:Nigeria’s Oil Production Sub-optimal

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

The federal government yesterday admitted that the country’s oil production level has remained sub-optimal for now, stating that it expects to fully meet its Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) quota by the end of 2022.

The Minister of State, Petroleum Resources, Mr Timipre Sylva, said this during a briefing in Abuja yesterday, to announce the country’s expectations during the upcoming Nigeria International Energy Summit (NIES) scheduled to commence next week.

The ceremony is a federal government official energy industry event, hosted by the ministry of petroleum resources and all its parastatals, including the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB).

Other co-hosts include: The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NURPC), Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) and the Petroleum Training Institute (PTI).

The minister reiterated that Nigeria as a country is not always happy when oil prices go up, but noted that the key industry players were doing everything to ramp up production.

Stating that the summit may not boost oil production in the short term, Sylva assured that once Nigeria’s production issues are fixed and the country begins refining its own products , then it will begin to fully enjoy high oil prices.

“I don’t know how the summit is going to boost our production, but I can assure you that we’re doing everything to ensure we meet our production quota. Already, our production is not where it was a few months ago.

“We are beginning to climb gradually. And we are hoping that by the end of this year, we would have completely regained production and meet our OPEC quota. That is the timeline.

“A lot is going on and then we are not happy at all that we’re not able to take advantage of the high prices today as you can see. So, it is our loss. We are doing everything to ensure that we’re able to bring back our production,” he noted.

According to the minister, another reason not to celebrate when prices go high is that there are other competing producers, for example, the shale producers in America, who will take advantage and take the market share of crude oil producers.

“If the price is at a certain level, it will not be profitable for them to produce their shale. So once the oil prices go up to a certain point, you’re encouraging a lot of production that will otherwise not be in the market.

“So we are not happy when prices go to a certain level. We will believe that prices should be at a certain point, which will be optimal for us, but sub-optimal for the shale producers.

“That’s why we like to have that balance, but here in Nigeria as well, you know that we are right now a net importer of petroleum products. And when the prices of crude goes up, it also affects the price of petroleum products.

“So for us, we are net importers. It’s also not very good for us. But of course, in a way , what we are saying is that if we are going to produce more and you get more dollars from your production, then it gives you more money for your imports.

“But if you are now producing less and then you still have to make sure the Nigerian market is supplied fully then you see there is a shortfall. That’s why we would rather like to have production now to be at the point where we’ll at least get enough to be able to do the imports, but our production at this point is not very optimal,” he maintained.

According to him, as it is, Nigeria is not necessarily making a lot of gains because “we are taking from the high prices and we’re also importing higher priced petroleum products,” he said.

On the plans for the energy summit, the minister stated that the objective of the event from inception was to deliver the biggest and best African Petroleum Technology and Business Conference that will be the platform, not just for Nigeria, but also for Africa to engage the global energy community.

The event formally known as the Nigeria International Petroleum Summit (NIPS), he said, will be themed “Revitalising the Industry: Future Fuels and Energy Transition” this year.

He listed some of the confirmed international guests to include the Minister of Energy, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Abdulaziz bin Salman Al Saud, who will be represented by Dr. Nasser AlDossary and Tom Alweendo, Minister of Mines and Energy, Namibia.

Other dignitaries expected, according to the minister, include: Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima, Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons, Equatorial Guinea and Aime Ngoy Mukena, Minister of Hydrocarbons, Democratic Republic of Congo.

The global energy leader and the Secretary General OPEC, Dr. Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo, Sylva noted, has also confirmed his attendance.

He added that going by past statistics, Nigeria was expecting over 5,000 participants from about 53 countries; 4,182 sq m exhibition space occupied by about 60 exhibitors and five country pavilions.