Again, Nigeria has missed its crude oil production quota set by the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries after averaging 1.49 million barrels per day in April, below the 1.5 mbpd benchmark.

Figures from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission showed that the country produced an average of 1,488,540 barrels of crude daily in April, representing about 99 per cent of the OPEC quota. When condensates were added, total daily production rose to 1.66mbpd

Last month, the NUPRC said oil production now averaged 1.8mbpd. However, data released on Tuesday was at variance with the report. The latest data mean Nigeria remained below its OPEC allocation for the ninth straight month since July 2025.

The NUPRC document showed that combined crude oil and condensate production peaked at 1.85 mbpd during the month, while the lowest output stood at 1.46 mbpd. The PUNCH reports that the April figures are an appreciable improvement compared to March, when oil output was 1.55mbpd.

Nigeria’s oil production has struggled for years due to crude theft, pipeline vandalism, ageing infrastructure, and underinvestment in the upstream sector. Although output improved marginally in April compared to March, it was still insufficient to meet the country’s OPEC target, underscoring persistent challenges in ramping up production despite government efforts to boost volumes.

The PUNCH reports that Nigeria’s crude production in March was 1.38 mbpd. While there was a 69,000 bpd increase from the 1.31 mbpd recorded in February, the figure is still 117,000 bpd below the OPEC quota.

The figures for February indicated a month-on-month decline of 146,000 barrels per day, widening the country’s shortfall from its OPEC production allocation. This is the eighth consecutive month the country has failed to meet the OPEC quota since July 2025.

Recall that although Nigeria recorded a marginal improvement in January, when production rose from 1.422 mbpd in December 2025 to 1.46 mbpd, the rebound was short-lived as output fell significantly in February 2026.

Earlier data from NUPRC had also shown that crude oil production weakened at the end of 2025. Production declined from 1.436 mbpd in November 2025 to 1.422 mbpd in December, before recovering slightly in January.

In 2025, Nigeria’s crude oil production fell below its OPEC quota in nine months of the year, meeting or slightly exceeding the target only in January, June, and July.

Nigeria opened 2025 strongly, producing 1.54 mbpd in January, about 38,700 barrels per day above its OPEC allocation. However, production slipped below the quota in February at 1.47 mbpd and weakened further in March to 1.40 mbpd, marking one of the widest shortfalls during the year.