Nigeria’s oil GDP records slowest growth in 2024

Nigeria, Africa’s largest oil producer, has recorded the slowest growth in its oil Gross Domestic Product (GDP) so far in 2024. This is according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The latest data from the NBS revealed Nigeria’s oil sector’s GDP growth slowed to 5.17 percent in the third quarter of 2024, down from 10.15 percent recorded in the previous quarter.

However, further findings showed crude petroleum GDP increased by 9.12 percent from 7.64 percent in the second quarter of 2023 to 14.87 percent in Q3 2024.

The nation in the third quarter of 2024 recorded an average daily oil production of 1.47 million barrels per day (mbpd), higher than the daily average production of 1.45 mbpd recorded in the same quarter of 2023 by 0.02 mbpd and higher than the second quarter of 2024 production volume of 1.41 mbpd by 0.07mbpd.

At the start of the year, the country had set its 2024 budget to 1.78 bpd and $77.96 per barrel, however it has failed to meet this goal.

Read also: NUPRC puts oil output closer to 1.53m bpd, not 1.8m claim by NNPC

Latest data from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) revealed that Nigeria produced 1.5 mbpd in October, its lowest in three months.

Cordros Securities Limited, in its 2024 full-year outlook, projected that the economy will remain on a growth trajectory, supported by improvement in the oil sector amid the government’s ongoing efforts to curb pipeline vandalism and oil theft and, gradual recovery from the impact of policy reforms implemented in the prior year, as well as continued resilience in the services sector.

Large-scale oil theft from pipelines and wells has been one of the country’s biggest challenges in recent years, damaging government finances and limiting the country’s output and exports.

The NNPC and the Ministry of Petroleum had estimated that Nigeria loses between 200,000 and 400,000 barrels of crude oil daily due to theft.

Earlier, Mele Kyari, disclosed that since the crackdown on illegal refineries began in 2022, 8,684 sites—described as “boiling points” rather than actual refineries—have been deactivated.

He also revealed that 6,610 illegal pipeline connections were identified, with 5,913 of them successfully removed.

However, Kyari highlighted that more than 1,000 illegal connections still exist, and new ones are reconnected daily, making the fight against oil theft challenging.