Lagos — Nigeria's crude oil production tumbled 75,000 barrels to 2.01 million barrels, the first decrease since February and the largest reduction of any member of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), a Bloomberg survey of oil companies, producers and analysts has revealed.

The survey published yesterday showed that crude oil production from OPEC dropped from a 17-month high in June, led by the decline in Nigeria's production. The country however exceeded its OPEC quota of 1,673,000 barrels by 337,000 barrels.

The 2010 first quarter production report released recently by the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) put Nigeria's average production at 2,346,556 bpd (2.3mbpd). In January, the average daily production rate was 2,280,859 bpd, while those of February and March were 2,345,897 bpd and 2,412,911 bpd respectively.

The survey showed that production from the 11 members bound by quotas slipped 157,000 barrels or 0.5 per cent, to an average 29.23 million barrels a day. Output by members with quotas, except Iraq, dropped 122,000 barrels to 26.865 million, leaving the OPEC-11 still overproducing their output target by 2.02 million.

OPEC cut its production quotas by 4.2 million barrels to 24.845 million barrels a day effective from January 2009 as fuel demand fell during the worst recession. Compliance among the 11 members with targets rose to 52 per cent from 49 per cent in May.

Meanwhile, crude oil for August delivery fell $2.31 or 3 per cent, to $75.94 a barrel on Tuesday on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the biggest single-session decline since June 4. Oil slipped 9.3 per cent between the end of March and yesterday, the first quarterly drop since 2008.

OPEC had in June said it would likely keep its production quota unchanged when it next meets on October 14 in Vienna. The body said it could not take any action in view of the fluctuating oil prices.

The Bloomberg survey noted that Iraqi output dropped 35,000 barrels to 2.365 million in June, the second-biggest decrease in OPEC. The Persian Gulf nation was the group's third-largest producer this month.

However, Saudi Arabia, OPEC's biggest producer, pumped 8.29 million barrels a day in June, unchanged from the previous month. The kingdom also exceeded its quota by 239,000 barrels.