The Federal Government has admitted that Nigeria lacks sufficient freely available crude oil to meet the Dangote Petroleum Refinery’s daily requirement of 700,000 barrels, despite efforts to increase production and curb oil theft.

Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, made the disclosure during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today at the weekend. The disclosure comes amid renewed debate over government intervention in the petroleum market, with proposals for production subsidies, the 30-days petrol discount and other measures to support domestic refining and reduce the cost of petroleum products.

He explained that Nigeria’s total crude oil production does not translate into an equivalent volume available for allocation by the government.

Oyedele said Nigeria’s crude oil production of about 1.8 million barrels per day was shared among parties operating under production-sharing contracts and joint ventures, while production costs, royalties and other obligations further reduced the volume available to the government.

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