Nigeria targets fresh 480,000bpd as NNPC, ExxonMobil sign new deal

Indication has emerged that Nigeria may add 480,000 barrels to its daily crude oil output as the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited(NNPCL) and ExxonMobil have taken necessary step towards resolving the disagreement surrounding the sale of the latter’s asset to Seplat Energy.

The NNPCL affirmed on Thursday that it had signed a settlement agreement with ExxonMobil companies in Nigeria over the proposed divestment of a 100 per cent interest in Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited to Seplat Energy Offshore Limited.

This disclosure by NNPL is coming barely after President Bola Tinubu announced his intervention in the debacle between NNPCL and ExxonMobil impeding the sale of the assets to Seplat.

The Minister of States for Petroleum, Heineken Lokpobiri, revealed recently that Nigeria had lost about $30bn in the past two and a half years as a result of the unsuccessful divestment.

The minister also expressed concerns that Nigeria was losing about 480,000 barrels of crude oil per day due to the Seplat/ExxonMobil crisis.

He explained that the asset was producing about 600,000bpd until the crisis began in 2022, saying the nation was losing millions of dollars daily.

Recall that ExxonMobil and Seplat Energy had in 2022 announced a $1.6bn sales agreement deal that would see Seplat purchase ExxonMobil’s complete shares in the NNPCL.