Nigeria lost a whopping N1.011 trillion ($6.439 billion) to oil theft and production losses arising from the flooding that ravaged most parts of the country last year, as the country recorded a decline in crude oil production in November 2012, according to the nation’s apex bank, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The CBN also stated that the country earned N235.307 billion ($1.499 billion) from the local refining of crude oil for domestic consumption in November 2012, as deliveries to the refineries for domestic consumption stood at 0.45 million barrels per day (mbd) or 13.50 million barrels during the month under review.
According to the CBN Economic Report for the month of November 2012, Nigeria’s crude oil production, including condensates and natural gas liquids, was estimated at an average of 1.95 mbd or 58.5 million barrels for the month, dropping by 0.05 mbd or 2.5 per cent below the average of 2.00 mbd or 62.0 million barrels produced in the month of October 2012.
The CBN, which put the price per barrel at US$111.02, said that the country earned N784.366 billion ($4.996 billion) from crude oil export, dropping by 3.2 per cent from N837.518 billion ($5.335 billion) recorded in October.
Crude oil export, according to the CBN, was estimated at 1.50 mbd or 45.0 million barrels for the month, representing a decline of 3.2 per cent when compared with the 1.55 mbd or 48.05 million barrels recorded in the preceding month.
“At an estimated average of US$111.02 per barrel, the price of Nigeria’s reference crude, the Bonny Light (37º API), fell by 2.8 per cent, compared with the level in the preceding month,” the report noted.
The document said that the fall in price was attributed to the heightened concerns of decreased demand by the United States as a result of their announcement of plans to reduce dependence on foreign oil.
The report further stated that the average prices of other competing crudes, namely the United Kingdom (UK) Brent, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) and Forcados, at US$110.20, US$79.15 and US$112.66 per barrel also exhibited similar trend as the Bonny Light.
“The average price of the OPEC’s (Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries’) basket of 11 crude streams decreased by 1.8 per cent to US$106.86 per barrel below the level recorded in the preceding,” the CBN stated.
The CBN further disclosed that oil sector receipts increase by 5.2 per cent to US$3.53 billion (N554.21 billion) in November, accounting for 33.6 per cent of the total foreign exchange inflow of US$10.53 billion (N1.65 trillion).
Continuing, the CBN said, “The visible sector accounted for the bulk (65.9 per cent) of total foreign exchange disbursed in November 2012.
“A breakdown of the sectoral disbursement showed that the minerals and oil sector accounted for 14.9 per cent followed by industrial sector 20.8 per cent. Other beneficiary sectors, included: food products (12.3 per cent), manufactured products (14.3 per cent), transport (3.4 per cent) and agricultural products (0.3 per cent).”
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