Nigeria has maintained its position as Africa’s third-largest crude oil producer for October 2022.  

This is according to data from the monthly oil market report (MOMR) from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) which was released on November 14. 

The report further showed that Algeria took the top spot as Africa’s largest crude oil producer for October, followed by Angola.

Loss of status: In September 2022, Nairametrics reported that Nigeria lost its status as Africa’s foremost crude oil producer after its daily crude oil production dropped below 1 million barrels per day (mb/d) to 972,394 barrels per day. 

For months, Nigeria has been battling crude oil theft, with the authorities struggling to clamp down on perpetrators to shore up the country’s crude oil output.  

Fight against oil theft: In October 2022, Mele Kyari, the Group Managing Director, of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) announced that during his team’s clampdown on crude oil theft in Nigeria’s south-south region, they had deactivated 395 illegal refineries, and destroyed 274 reservoirs. He also said 1,561 metal tanks were destroyed and 49 trucks were seized. 

Africa’s top producers: The MOMR data revealed that Algeria had a crude oil production output of 1.060 million barrels per day (mb/d), followed by Angola with 1.051 million barrels per day (mb/d) and then Nigeria with 1.014 million barrels per day (mb/d). So, the top three crude oil producers on the continent as of October 2022 are Algeria, Angola, and Nigeria. 

Comparing September and October outputs: The MOMR also revealed that Algeria recorded a production output of 1.058 mb/d for September, showing a 2% increase between both months highlighted. Angola recorded 1.091 mb/d for September 2022, showing a 40% decline in output. Nigeria recorded a 938,000 b/d for September 2022, showing a 77% increase in output.  

Other key OPEC producers: Based on direct communication data, Saudi Arabia recorded 10 million barrels per day in October 2022, a slight decline compared to 11 million barrels per day in September 2022. Meanwhile, Iraq recorded 4.65 million barrels per day in October 2022 and 4.66 million barrels per day in September, showing an 11% decline for the period highlighted.  

OPEC oil demand: Demand for OPEC-13 crude in 2022 is revised down by 0.1 million barrels per day from the previous MOMR to stand at 28.6 million barrels per day. Meanwhile, the projected demand for OPEC-13 crude oil in 2023 has been revised down by 0.2 million barrels per day from a previous projection of 29.3 million barrels per day.

For the record: According to OPEC, world oil demand growth in 2022 has been revised down by 0.1 million barrels per day from the last month’s assessment. The demand is now forecast at 2.5 million barrels per day year-on-year, reflecting observed trends and developments, including the extension of China’s zero-COVID-19 restrictions and some economic challenges in OECD Europe that have weighed on oil demand. Total oil demand is projected to average 99.6 million barrels per day in 2022.