Nigerian govt targets 2 million bpd output by December

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Heineken Lokpobiri, said on Friday the Federal Government planned to increase crude oil production to two million barrels per day (bdp) and beyond by December.

Lokpobiri, who disclosed this to journalists in Abuja, said the government was working assiduously to achieve the target.

The minister said there was a steady increase in production, adding that it was 1.1 million barrels last month and had subsequently increased to 1.4 million barrels.

He said: “The reason why we are underperforming is because of insecurity and we are gradually tackling those problems.

“My sole agenda is to increase production. Once we increase production we will get more revenue for the country. You know Nigeria is still more dependent on oil.

“Though the non-oil sector is also supporting the economy, a substantial part of our forex comes from oil.

READ ALSO: Nigeria, others’ crude oil boost OPEC+ output, tempers Saudi, Russia cut

“So, my ambition is to see how I can lead the sector to increase production so that we can get more revenue to deal with the fund and strategic rationale projects in the country.

“I get the reports from relevant authorities. Today, we are doing about 1.4 million barrels of crude. So, we are steadily increasing but our target is to see how we can get to two million barrels.”

Lokpobiri urged stakeholders, including the International Oil Companies (IOCs) and local producers to work with the federal government in tackling the challenges in the sector.

“We have identified where the problem is and where we are getting the shortfall. We are already engaging stakeholders and within the next few weeks, will be able to tell the public how far we have gone in that direction,” the minister added.

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