Nigeria’s total oil output averaged 1.71 million barrels per day (mbpd), including condensates, while crude oil alone stood at approximately 1.51 million bpd in July 2025.

The increase follows intensified operations by the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) aimed at protecting energy infrastructure and curbing oil theft and illegal refining.

Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, NAF Director of Public Relations and Information, said the operations were in line with directives from the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Hasan Abubakar, for enhanced operational tempo across all theatres.

Group Capt. Abdulafeez Opaleye, Commander of the Air Component of Operation Delta Safe (AC OPDS) at the 115 Special Operations Group in Port Harcourt, noted that the output surge reflects improved security, with NAF operations reducing disruptions from sabotage and theft.

“Daily helicopter sorties across multiple Niger Delta states have denied saboteurs access to pipelines, illegal refineries, and logistics hubs, contributing to a measurable rebound in national oil output,” Opaleye said.

The operations, conducted over Ondo, Edo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom, and Cross River states, included Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR), armed reconnaissance, and pipeline patrol missions.

They led to the destruction of dozens of illegal refining facilities, neutralisation of militant camps, and exposure of oil theft networks.

Air Vice Marshal Francis Edosa, Chief of Training and Operations, highlighted mission metrics from May to July 2025: 117 missions, 189 sorties, 192 flight hours, over 60,000 litres of Jet A-1 fuel expended, 25 cooking tanks, 11 reservoirs, and three drums used in illegal refining destroyed.

Edosa emphasised that intelligence-driven and kinetic air operations can deliver both security and economic benefits, reinforcing the NAF’s commitment to stabilising the Niger Delta, safeguarding national oil revenue, and ensuring safe skies for legitimate oil production.