By Uzair Adam
The Federal Government has launched an ambitious initiative to increase Nigeria’s crude oil production by one million barrels daily within the next 12 to 24 months.
This plan is part of broader efforts to address challenges such as oil theft, pipeline vandalism, outdated infrastructure, and attracting new investments.
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) noted a 1.68% decline in production from 1.571 million barrels per day in August to 1.544 million barrels per day in September.
Despite this, the government’s new initiative, “Project 1MMBPD,” is expected to restore production levels through strategic interventions.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, represented by Senator George Akume, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, emphasized that increasing production is crucial for boosting national revenue and economic growth.
“Projecting one million barrels per day is a step towards a more sustainable future for Nigeria’s oil and gas sector,” the President said at the event marking NUPRC’s third anniversary.
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, urged the sector to aim for even higher targets.
He noted that Nigeria once produced over two million barrels per day and should be looking to reach 2.5 million in the short term and four million barrels per day in the long term.
The government also approved four major divestment deals, including ExxonMobil’s sale of its assets to Seplat Energy, while blocking a $2.4 billion Shell divestment deal with Renaissance.
Mallam Mele Kyari, the group CEO of NNPC Limited, and Tony Elumelu, the chairman of UBA Group, stressed the urgent need to modernize the country’s over 50-year-old oil infrastructure as key to achieving the new production goals.
Both highlighted the impact of pipeline vandalism and regulatory uncertainty as major hurdles that need to be addressed to safeguard Nigeria’s oil sector and economy.