Nigeria produces 17.67m barrels and prices rally around 2014 highs
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Global oil benchmark price rose to $89.17 per barrel (pb) on Wednesday, the highest in seven years, but slid 39 cents to $88.05 on Thursday after slashing more $1 in earlier trade.
Thursday also broke the news that Nigeria produced 17,686,919 barrels of crude oil and condensate in 2021, a year that saw increasing non-oil earnings for the treasury to offset lower oil revenue.
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) disclosed the output in its “Crude Oil and Condensate Production 2021” which shows that total volume included crude oil, blended condensate, and un-blended condensate.
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Daily output
The figures, reported by The Nation, listed daily production as follows:
- January – 1,711,467 barrels
- February – 1,760,934 barrels
- March – 1,748,474 barrels
- April – 1,687,044 barrels
- May – 1,659,293 barrels
- June – 1,639,403
- July – 1,639,665 barrels
- August – 1,530,210 barrels
- September – 1,532989 barrels
- October – 1,525,263 barrels
- November – 1,541,901 barrels
- December – 1,471, 210 barrels
Oil prices slip from 2014 highs
Reuters reports that oil slipped on Thursday as investors took profits after a recent price rally, but strong demand and short-term supply disruptions continue to support prices close to their highest since 2014.
Brent crude futures were down 39 cents, or 0.4 per cent, at $88.05 a barrel by 1006 GMT after dropping more than $1 in earlier trade. The global benchmark rose to $89.17 on Wednesday, its highest since October 2014.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures for February delivery were down 29 cents, or 0.3per cent, at $86.67 a barrel after dropping nearly $1 earlier. The contract, which expires on Thursday, climbed to $87.91 on Wednesday.
The more active March WTI contract was down 15 cents, or 0.1per cent, at $85.65 a barrel.
“The voices of those forecasting $100 per barrel oil are getting louder by the day,” said Tamas Varga at oil brokerage PVM.
Supply concerns
Supply concerns have mounted this week after a fire temporarily halted flows through an oil pipeline running from Iraq’s Kirkuk to the Turkish port of Ceyhan on Tuesday.
An attack by Yemen’s Houthis on the United Arab Emirates, the third-largest producer in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), heightened geopolitical risks.
The market is also supported by supply shortfalls from the OPEC+ producer group comprising OPEC and allies led by Russia.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) on Wednesday said the group produced about 800,000 barrels per day (bpd) below its production targets in December.
The IEA said while the oil market could be in a significant surplus in the first quarter of this year, inventories are likely to be well below pre-pandemic levels. The agency also upgraded its 2022 demand forecast.
A rise in U.S. oil inventories last week weighed on prices.
Crude stocks rose by 1.4 million barrels last week while gasoline inventories rose by 3.5 million barrels and distillate stocks fell by 1.2 million barrels, according to market sources citing American Petroleum Institute figures on Wednesday.
PVM’s Varga said high inflation rates and the prospect of rising interest rates represent downside risks to the oil price rally.
