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By Stella Odueme
Nigeria’s daily petrol consumption increased by seven per cent to 44.4 million litres in September 2026, up from 41.5 million litres recorded in August, according to the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
The regulator disclosed this in its September 2026 industry factsheet released on Thursday, noting that petrol truck-out volumes rebounded from a 13-month low recorded in August.
The report attributed about 65 per cent of Nigeria’s petrol requirement in September to domestic refining, while local refineries accounted for 74 per cent of total receipts. Imports supplied the remaining 26 per cent.
The Dangote Petroleum Refinery, with a capacity of 650,000 barrels per day, produced an average of 47.22 million litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, daily during the month.
Of the total output, 28.5 million litres were supplied to the domestic market, while 15.47 million litres were exported daily.
The refinery also produced 24.32 million litres of Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), or diesel, per day, with domestic receipts at 8.14 million litres and exports at 15.91 million litres.
For Aviation Turbine Kerosene (ATK), production stood at 26.13 million litres daily, while exports accounted for 23.25 million litres.
The NMDPRA said petrol evacuation through domestic supplies and exports was 3.25 million litres per day below production, resulting in an increase in closing stock. It added that petrol exports accounted for 35.2 per cent of the refinery’s total evacuation.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s state-owned refineries recorded no production during the period under review, with the Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna refineries remaining inactive.
Among modular refineries, Waltersmith recorded an average capacity utilisation of 62.25 per cent, while Edo Refinery posted 104.24 per cent. Aradel and OPAC recorded 31.90 per cent and 18.43 per cent utilisation, respectively, while Duport remained shut down.
According to the regulator, modular refineries supplied 4.3 per cent of domestic diesel consumption in September, while feedstock shortages and maintenance shutdowns affected operations at Aradel and OPAC.
On gas infrastructure, the authority reported that the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) gas pipeline project had reached 84 per cent completion as of September 2026.