Nigeria’s Oil Exploration Declines 41.7% As Rig Count Falls — OPEC

Nigeria’s oil exploration and drilling activities declined sharply in April 2026 as the country recorded a 41.7 per cent drop in active oil rigs, according to the latest report released by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).

Data contained in OPEC’s May 2026 Monthly Oil Market Report showed that Nigeria’s rig count fell from 17 in March 2026 to 12 in April 2026, reflecting reduced upstream exploration and investment activities in the petroleum sector.

Rig count is regarded as a major indicator of oil and gas exploration, field development and investment confidence within the industry.

The report also revealed that Nigeria’s average rig count declined to 13 in 2025, compared to 15 recorded in 2024, highlighting a broader slowdown in upstream activities despite government efforts to boost crude oil production and attract investors.

The decline comes amid ongoing operational and investment challenges facing Nigeria’s oil sector, including insecurity, pipeline vandalism, regulatory uncertainties and funding constraints.

OPEC noted that while Nigeria experienced a significant drop in upstream activities, the broader African oil industry recorded modest growth during the same period.

According to the report, Africa’s total rig count rose from 42 in March 2026 to 48 in April 2026.

However, Nigeria accounted for a major portion of the continent’s decline in operational rigs.

Within OPEC member countries, Nigeria remained far behind leading oil producers in terms of active drilling operations.

Saudi Arabia recorded 265 rigs in April 2026, while the United Arab Emirates posted 66 rigs and Iraq recorded 19 rigs during the period.

Industry analysts warned that the sustained decline in rig activities could negatively affect Nigeria’s future crude oil production capacity if fresh exploration and field development projects are not intensified.

They also noted that the situation may further complicate Nigeria’s efforts to consistently meet its crude oil production quota allocated by OPEC.

The decline comes despite the Federal Government’s ongoing push to revitalise the sector under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), which was introduced to improve investment confidence and increase production output.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) recently stated that the country’s active rig count currently stands at 31, indicating that exploration and production activities are still ongoing across several onshore and offshore oil assets nationwide.