The Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Mele Kyari, has stated that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has reengineered Nigeria’s oil sector, with the country now producing 1.67 million barrels of oil per day.
The Times reported that this was said by him on Friday, September 1, 2023, at a news conference.
According to Kyari, the country has had great security issues; nevertheless, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has reengineered the security approach, and the country is already witnessing substantial changes in the oil industry.
He said, “I was just looking at the data for Wednesday for crude oil and condensate production, and it is at 1.67 million barrels per day. This is significant if you compare it to the situation where we were almost going below a million barrels per day about a year and some months ago, and it is quite significant.
“I can also attest that Mr. President has made considerable efforts to open up the market so that these resources can be put in place. The tax overhaul is one among them.”
He claimed that currently, this sector is subject to 13 separate taxes, and I am aware that the reform team was already examining how stable the fiscal environment was in this crucial area since no one invests in this sector unless they have a line of sight of at least 10 years of fiscal stability.
“With that, we are already noticing interest from people wanting to come and invest in our industry, as well as from those who are already with us, returning to invest;
“However, we are pleased that the interventions are now showing results in terms of security and providing the fiscal stability needed for businesses to invest. This is also evident in NNPCL’s current capacity to fulfill its partnership agreements, which we were unable to do before May 29, 2023, due to our efforts to accommodate fuel subsidies.”
He stated: “I can confirm that by November 2023, we will be on a clean slate.”
Take note that in July 2023, Nigeria produced 1,081,396 barrels of crude oil per day, along with 38,258 barrels and 174,509 barrels per day, respectively, of blended and unblended condensates.
For the highlighted month, all of them added up to a total of 1,294,162 barrels per day.
In the meantime, the country continues to fight crude oil theft in the Niger Delta’s oil-producing areas.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has been documenting cases of crude oil theft events since the second quarter of 2023, often numbering in the hundreds each week.
The country’s national security adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, reportedly asserted that thieves are stealing 400,000 barrels of oil from Nigeria every day. This is estimated to be worth $4 million.
