KEY POINTS
- Nigeria’s oil production averaged 1.71m bopd in July 2025, up 9.9% year-on-year.
- Key terminals including Bonny, Brass, and Forcados drove growth, though Qua Iboe slipped.
- Regulators target a push toward 3m bopd, backed by stronger security and new investments.
Nigeria’s production of oil increased in July, giving the continent’s biggest producer new impetus to recover barrels that were lost to sabotage, theft, and years of underinvestment.
According to the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, NUPRC, production increased from 1.56 million barrels of oil per day (bopd) in July 2025 to an average of 1.71 million bopd in July 2025. The total, which represents a 9.9% increase year over year, comprises 204,864 bopd of condensates and 1.507 million bopd of crude oil.
In the Niger Delta, where illegal bunkering and oil theft have reduced government revenue and deterred investment, the regulator attributed the recovery to increased security patrols.
Push toward 3 million barrels per day
Nigeria briefly exceeded 1.8 million bopd for the first time since late 2023, according to NUPRC chief executive Gbenga Komolafe earlier this month. He attributed this to improved pipeline surveillance and cooperation with security forces.
Komolafe reaffirmed that the administration’s overarching goal is still to increase production by 1 million bopd in order to reach 3 million in the medium term. This objective would depend on new investments, stable regulations, and continued success in reducing theft.
OPEC’s latest report pegged Nigeria’s June output at 1.505 million bopd, in line with NUPRC figures. While the recovery is encouraging, analysts caution that sustainability will depend on resolving infrastructure bottlenecks, maintaining security, and ensuring timely investments in upstream projects.
