Nigeria’s oil production drops to 900,000 per barrel

Months of militant attacks on pipelines and oil infrastructure in the Niger Delta region have crippled production in Nigeria, Africa’s largest producer of crude.

Militant group Niger Delta Avengers NDA has vowed to reduce Nigeria’s economy to “zero.”

Exports, according to Voice of America (VOA) analysts, have fallen from about 2.2 million barrels per day to as low as 990,000 barrels per day, making Angola Africa’s largest producer of oil, at least for now.

The drop in production and the low price of oil globally are major reasons why Nigeria is expected to enter a recession in coming months.

Gail Anderson, research director at energy research and consultancy group Wood Mackenzie, says the militants have been careful in their sabotage.

“The attacks themselves have been well-targeted and they’ve been designed to cause maximum damage, and I think they’ve been quite successful in that respect,” Anderson said.

The NDA came out with a blog that took credit for a number of attacks on pipelines in the Niger Delta. It also listed demands, including apologies from politicians, the release of an imprisoned separatist leader and a redistribution of ownership of oil blocks.