NIGERIA ALLOWED HIGHER OUTPUT QUOTA BY OPEC

OPEC HAS GRANTED Nigeria a higher oil output target under an Opec-led deal to limit oil supply in a move unannounced by the group, following efforts by Africa’s largest exporter to tweak the agreement to accommodate its expanding oil industry. The country’s allocation was increased to 1.774 million barrels per day (bpd) from 1.685 million bpd at the last Opec meeting in July, three Opec delegates with knowledge of the matter said. “It’s happened,” one of the delegates said. “I’ve not heard of any other changes to the agreement.” The quota increase will mean Nigeria will see an improvement in its compliance with the supply cut accord, but it is still pumping more crude than the new target according to Opec’s own figures and industry surveys. Nigeria’s petroleum ministry and Opec did not immediately reply to a request for comment. Abuja has had a dismal record in delivering its share of the cut, overshooting by 400 percent in August according to the International Energy Agency. Opec put Nigerian production at 1.866 million bpd in August – far above the new quota. The nation has previously tried to draw a distinction between what it considers as crude and what it considers as condensates, an ultra light crude-like product that doesn’t fall under the Opec+ cut agreement. Its own definition of condensates would shave a significant amount of exports from its cap. Data from Nigeria’s Department of Petroleum Resources pegged daily average condensate production at between 414 000 to 497 000 bpd in 2017, the latest year available. | Reuters