Nigeria's domestic refineries supplied 12.01 billion litres of petrol between September 2025 and September 2026, accounting for 61.2 per cent of the total 19.68 billion litres pumped into the market, while imports made up the remaining 38.8 per cent at 7.67 billion litres, according to the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
The data reveals significant shifts in supply patterns over the review period. Petrol imports were elevated towards the end of 2025, averaging 52.1 million litres per day in November and 42.2 million litres daily in December, but this trend reversed in early 2026. By February, imports had fallen to 3 million litres per day compared with domestic supply of 29.4 million litres daily. The gap continued widening through April and May as local refinery output increased, before overall receipts contracted in September to 38.7 million litres per day, comprising 28.5 million litres from domestic sources and 10.2 million litres from imports. The NMDPRA attributed the September decline to a 21 per cent month-on-month fall in domestic supply, a 30 per cent drop in imports, and the exhaustion of approved import permits among major trading companies.
Beyond petrol, domestic refineries have expanded their contribution across other petroleum products. Domestic refineries supplied approximately 4 billion litres of diesel, accounting for 60.5 per cent of total diesel supply of about 6.61 billion litres, while imports provided 2.60 billion litres. In the liquefied petroleum gas market, domestic sources supplied 1.56 million tonnes of the 1.86 million tonnes total, representing 83.9 per cent of supply. The Dangote Refinery alone contributed 15.1 per cent of LPG supply, while NLNG and Seplat Energy supplied 54.3 per cent via vessel. For aviation fuel, total receipts reached 1.04 billion litres over the period, averaging 2.6 million litres daily.
The expansion in domestic petroleum product supply has been supported by increased crude oil allocations to local refineries. Data from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) for January to July 2026 showed domestic refineries received approximately 460,000 barrels per day, or 29 per cent of the average daily crude oil lifting of 1.61 million barrels. This allocation represents a substantial increase from 280,000 barrels per day in 2025 and 220,000 barrels per day in 2024. Direct crude exports averaged 1.15 million barrels per day, accounting for 71 per cent of liftings.
The growing domestic refining capacity addresses ongoing debate within Nigeria's petroleum sector. Proponents of full local refining argue that every imported litre pressures foreign exchange reserves and causes capital flight, while those backing continued imports contend that Nigeria cannot rely on a single refinery for fuel supply, warning this would create a monopoly.