Nigeria’s Crude Oil Output Hits 1.8m Barrels Daily, FG Targets 2.5m

Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, has announced that the country’s crude oil production has risen to 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) from about 1 million bpd, with a new target of 2.5 million bpd as American investors show strong interest in Nigerian oil blocks.

Speaking at the maiden Africa Energy Investment Summit (AE Invest 2025) held in New York, Lokpobiri highlighted renewed global confidence in Africa’s energy sector, stressing that oil and gas remain central to the continent’s development.

Making a case for sustained fossil fuel investment in Africa, he declared: “Africa must not be deceived into abandoning fossil fuels while the West continues to expand production. Our hydrocarbons will finance our transition, not charity, not aid.”

Also addressing the summit, Equatorial Guinea’s Minister of Hydrocarbon Mining Development, H.E. Antonio Oburu Ondo — representing Vice President Nguema Obiang Mangue — urged urgent action to reclaim Africa’s control over its energy future.

“Africa holds 40% of the world’s natural resource discoveries yet remains at the mercy of financiers in London, Paris, and New York. Energy finance is a question of sovereignty, we must build the African Energy Bank, mobilize our sovereign wealth and pension funds, and secure Africa’s rightful place as a global energy leader,” he said.

The Secretary General of the African Petroleum Producers Organization (APPO), Dr. Omar Farouk Ibrahim, explained the significance of hosting the summit on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA): “UNGA brings all our leaders and investors together, making it the ideal platform to connect, engage, and unlock funding for Africa’s energy future.”