The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has stated that the country has the capacity to produce 2 million crude oil barrels per day (bpd).

This is still 200,000 barrels short of the 2.2m mbp targeted by the federal government in 2025 budget parameters.

The commission yesterday said Nigeria has continued to meet its OPEC quota due to its initiatives and working collaboratively with industry stakeholders to sustain and grow productions.

“Such initiatives include, the project 1 million barrels, implementation of the metering audit, restoration of shut-in strings and increased rig counts, facility uptime, creation of alternative crude evacuation mechanism etc.

“Furthermore, Nigeria now has the technical capacity to produce above two million barrels daily. The Commission is galvanizing Industry stakeholders – operators, service providers (local and international), rig owners, off-takers, and financiers – in order to fully unlock the potential, riding on the improved operating environment and social inclusion in operating areas.”

The statement also faulted a report titled, ‘N8.41tn oil theft drains economy, fuels investors’ doubts’ published by a national daily, stating the report was based on a misinterpretation of crude loss statistics between 2021 and July 2025 which had been released by the NUPRC in the spirit of transparency and in line with the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021.

“Recall that the commission had revealed on September 11, 2025 that daily crude oil losses had dropped to 9,600 barrels per day, the lowest since 2009 which was reported widely and accurately. The NUPRC was vindicated again when the latest figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed that Nigeria’s economy grew by 4.23% largely on the back of an increased oil output and two other sectors an-acknowledgement of the steady progress made by the industry to combat the menace of crude oil theft.”

It added that crude oil losses have been on the downward trend due to collaborative efforts between the NUPRC, the Office of the National Security Adviser, the military, Operators and other relevant stakeholders.

“This collaboration through both kinetic and non-kinetic means, dropped oil theft from a staggering 102,900 in 2021 – when the Commission was established – to the current 9,600bopd representing over 90% reduction in losses.” (Daily Trust)