Nigeria’s crude oil and condensates reserves increased to 37.047billion barrels per day as of January 1, 2022 from the 36.910bbs recorded of January 1, 2021.
The CEO of Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Gbenga Komolafe disclosed this to journalists in Abuja on Friday.
“A total of sixty-one operating companies submitted their 2021 annual report on reserves in line with the provisions of the PIA, 2021.
“Analysis of the report indicates that the nation’s oil and condensate reserves status as at 1st January 2022 was 37.046 billion barrels representing a slight increase of 0.37 per cent compared to 36.910 billion barrels as at 1st January 2021,” he said.
On the other hand, he said the national gas reserves status as of 1st January 2022 was 208.62 (trillion cubic feet), representing an increase of 1.01 per cent compared to 206.53 TCF as at 1st January 2021.
Komolafe said the commission recognizes that the formulation of all-inclusive strategies to increase crude oil and gas reserves (from 37 billion barrels and 208.62 trillion cubic feet) requires thorough consideration of all factors militating against efficient and effective exploration and production operations, and identification of low hanging fruits or opportunities.
The commission, he said, has commenced full-scale audit of crude oil theft and assessment of upstream assets integrity audit to establish actual crude oil theft figures in the upstream petroleum industry.
He attributed the audit to the recent controversial figures on theft volumes thrown up by some industry operators, which impacts negatively on Federation revenue.
Komolafe noted that this was very important as the nation derives its royalty from net crude oil receipts.
He said the conflict between Russia and Ukraine and the attendant disruptions to the global gas demand-supply chain provided Nigeria with a unique opportunity to fill this gap through the implementation of several natural gas developmental initiatives.
He also noted that the commission since assumption of office six months ago taken some proactive initiatives towards the enhancement of crude oil and gas production, taking advantage of current market realities such as the upsurge of crude oil prices to $106.25 per barrel and disruptions in the supply of gas due to the war in Ukraine.