Again, Nigeria misses Budget 2025 crude oil output target

There were fresh fears over the execution of Nigeria's N54.99 trillion 2025 budget, yesterday,  as the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC, put Nigeria's crude oil output, excluding condensate, at 1.547 million barrels per day, bpd in June 2025.

This showed a marginal increase of 1.24 per cent from 1.528 million bpd recorded in May 2025, according to the organisation.

In its July 2025 Monthly Oil Market Report, MOMR, released yesterday, OPEC said this was based on data from  secondary sources.

But when data obtained from direct communication were considered, OPEC put the nation's output at 1.505 million bpd in June 2025, indicating a marginal increase from 1.453 million bpd recorded in May 2025.

Also, Nigeria's Bonny Light, yesterday, hovered at $69 per barrel, indicating $6 per barrel below the nation's $75 per barrel budget 2025 reference price.

The nation's N54.99 trillion 2025 budget is based on $75 per barrel, 2.06 million bpd output and exchange rate N1, 500/$.

However, in an interview with Vanguard, yesterday, Wumi Iledare, Professor Emeritus in Petroleum Economics & Policy Executive Director, Emmanuel Egbogah Foundation, Abuja, said: "I recalled  clearly expressing concern at the time that the budget assumptions bordered on daydreaming and were unrealistic. And now, here we are.

"The key budget anchors - production volume, oil price and costs - remain highly unpredictable, with significant deviations from the initial assumptions. This clearly shows that the budget process needs serious improvement."

Similarly, the National President of Oil and Gas Service Providers Association of Nigeria, OGSPAN, Mazi Colman Obasi, said: "Nigeria is passing through a critical phase and needs to be very careful. We invest in many not very important programmes instead of areas that can stimulate sustainable growth in the economy. We need to maximise our oil and gas earnings as well as use them to diversify the nation's economy. Nigeria should get to a point where we do not need to over-depend on oil and gas."