The Federal Government of Nigeria has announced that Nigeria’s oil production has risen to about 1.7 million barrels per day, up from the 1.1mbpd recorded in August 2023 indicating an improvement following its efforts to eradicate oil theft.
Chief Heineken Lokpobiri who is the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), made this in a session with journalists at his office in Abuja on Friday.
He said, ‘We have a sole agenda and it is to increase crude oil production. Once you increase production there will be more revenue for Nigeria and that is the recipe to virtually all the problems we have in this country.
‘You know that Nigeria is very dependent on oil, even our budget is always predicated on how many barrels of oil we produce. Although the non-oil sector is thriving, for us to solve our problems we need to earn enough forex.
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“And substantial part of our forex comes from the oil sector. So my ambition is to see how I can lead the sector to increase production and how we can get more revenue to be able to fund strategic national projects.
“We are already increasing production steadily. As at August it was about 1.1mbpd, but as at today it has increased to between 1.3 and 1.4mbpd exclusive of condensates, if you include condensates it will be about 1.7mbpd.”
In another report, a smuggling syndicate has reportedly been thwarted by the Nigerian Navy’s Forward Operating Base (FOB) in Badagry, resulting in the seizure of 27 bags of suspected Cannabis sativa.
At an official handover ceremony yesterday, Navy Captain Aiwuyor Adams-Aliu, the Commanding Officer of Nigerian Navy’s FOB Badagry, made the announcement. The occasion marked the formal transfer of the confiscated items to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Seme Special Area Command.
Adams-Aliu revealed that the illegal products, worth about N35 million were recovered following an intelligence tip-off. He said: ‘On Friday, September 2023, at about 19:00 a.m., the Nigerian Navy FOB Badagry got an intelligence of suspected smuggling activities.’