Oil prices have continued their steep decline since the beginning of the widespread fears of the Coronavirus outbreak occasioned by companies shut down. As the fears have continued to batter prices, the impact is fast telling back home as the sales of Nigeria’s crude oil in the international market has dived from its projection of $57 per barrel for 2020.
Minister of State for Petroleum, in Nigeria, Chief Timipre Marlin Sylva, has shown strong concern regarding the situation which has left the country’s projection for 2020 with a shortfall that may be too enormous to recover in very “short notice”.
Sylva, while together with the Senate Joint Committee on Petroleum on inspection of vandalized petroleum assets in parts of Lagos, said the dip could fall as low as $48 as more companies shut down businesses in the midst of the disease pandemic.
According to the Minister, as the deadly COVID-19 virus bites harder, Nigeria’s oil fortunes drop considerably from a projected $57 per barrel to $55 with upsetting implications on the country’s ability to sufficiently fund the budget for 2020.
The nation had hoped that China will furnish it with the single largest sales when it pegged its projection for 2020 at $57 per barrel of crude.
