Angola’s Oil Production Plummets Below 1 Million Barrels for First Time Since Leaving OPEC
Angola’s crude oil production has dropped to a critical low of 998,757 barrels per day in July, marking the first time output has fallen below the million-barrel threshold since the country’s dramatic exit from OPEC in 2023. This represents the lowest production level since March 2023, when monthly output last dropped to six figures, according to data from Angola’s National Agency for Petroleum and Gas.
The sharp decline poses a significant challenge for the government’s revenue projections, particularly as crude oil trades below the $70-per-barrel benchmark used in Angola’s 2025 budget. The southwest African nation is now considering approaching the International Monetary Fund for financial assistance, though it has yet to make a formal request, according to the Washington-based agency.
Angola quit OPEC in 2023 after 16 years of membership due to production quotas imposed by the group and has been struggling to maintain output above 1 million barrels per day since then. The country had forecast 1.07 million barrels per day for July, with the decline coming ahead of plans to cut exports to 994,000 barrels per day in October from 1.09 million in September.
Despite efforts to court investment in its oil industry, including recent approvals from major players like Equinor ASA, Chevron Corp., and TotalEnergies SE’s $6 billion project, production decline in aging fields appears inevitable. Angolan Oil Minister Diamantino Pedro Azevedo previously described mitigating this drop as the government’s “biggest challenge.”
Source: worldoil.com
