KEY POINTS
- Domestic refineries received more than 127 million barrels of crude and condensate from January to September 2026.
- FG pledged to rehabilitate the four state-owned refineries, while gas transportation capacity is targeted to double.
- NMDPRA plans a strategic fuel reserve and nine fuel laboratories nationwide by the second half of 2027.
Nigeria’s domestic refineries received more than 127 million barrels of crude oil and condensate between January and September 2026, as regulators reported improved supplies and the federal government renewed its commitment to rehabilitating the country’s four state-owned refineries.
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) said efforts to resolve disagreements between crude producers and refiners helped improve deliveries after supply challenges affected the first quarter of the year.
The developments were announced at the 2026 OTL Africa Downstream Energy Week in Lagos, where government officials and petroleum industry regulators also outlined plans to expand gas transportation, strengthen fuel security and increase domestic refining capacity.
Crude supplies improve after first-quarter challenges
NUPRC Chief Executive Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan said the commission’s engagement with producers and refiners helped improve crude deliveries during the second and third quarters of 2026.
Represented by the commission’s Assistant Director of Operations, Prosper Omonedo, she said domestic refineries received 53.7 million barrels of crude oil and condensate in the second quarter and 45.1 million barrels in the third quarter.
The commission reported supply performance of 97.4 per cent and 76.2 per cent for the respective quarters.
Overall, more than 127 million barrels of Nigerian crude oil and condensate were delivered to domestic refineries during the first nine months of the year.
Under Section 109 of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, the NUPRC is responsible for allocating crude oil to domestic refineries before exports.
The commission is also consulting producers, refiners and other industry stakeholders on a proposed domestic crude swap framework.
Under the arrangement, refiners could receive crude from the nearest suitable production or export point rather than transport an allocated grade over long distances. The commission estimates that this could reduce costs by $3 to $4 per barrel.
Nigeria’s oil production rises
Eyesan said Nigeria’s average crude oil and condensate production reached 1.717 million barrels per day in September, representing a 2.34 per cent increase from August.
Crude oil production alone averaged 1.53 million barrels per day, marking the fifth consecutive month the industry met or exceeded its production quota.
She attributed the improvement to better asset maintenance, stronger security around oil evacuation infrastructure, improved cooperation with operators and regulatory efforts to restore previously shut-in production.
The commission also outlined plans for the 2026 oil licensing round, which features 40 blocks. Eyesan said the evaluation process would be transparent, with published criteria and mandatory disclosure of beneficial ownership.
The NUPRC is enforcing a drill-or-drop policy to discourage companies from holding licences without developing the assets. According to the commission, 22 recent awardees are expected to contribute at least 250,000 barrels per day within five years.
FG promises to rehabilitate state-owned refineries
The federal government has reiterated its commitment to rehabilitating and repositioning Nigeria’s four national refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna.
Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Patience Oyekunle, said the government was adopting a more commercially sustainable approach to ensure the facilities do not become stranded assets.
She said the rehabilitation strategy would be supported by technical assessments, stronger partnerships and improved operational discipline.
The government also pointed to the country’s transition from dependence on imported petroleum products towards domestic refining, private-sector investment and stronger regional competitiveness.
Oyekunle said Nigeria had maintained compliance with its Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) production quota for four consecutive months. She also cited October production exceeding 1.7 million barrels per day, including condensates.
The government identified the growth of private refining as an important part of the transition. It said the Dangote Refinery had reached its stated nameplate capacity of 650,000 barrels per day, improving Nigeria’s prospects of becoming a net exporter of refined petroleum products.
Officials stressed, however, that expanding crude production must be accompanied by greater domestic value addition through refining, petrochemicals, gas processing and manufacturing.
New gas network code targets wider access
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has launched Revision II of the Nigerian Gas Transportation Network Code to improve access to gas transportation infrastructure.
NMDPRA Chief Executive Rabiu Umar unveiled the revised code with industry partners, including power generation companies, fertiliser producers, gas shippers and investors.
Umar described the code as a common set of rules governing how producers inject gas into shared pipelines, how volumes are measured and how transportation capacity is nominated.
He said open and fair access to pipeline infrastructure was necessary to ensure the facilities deliver their full economic value.
According to the authority, approximately three-fifths of the gas processed in September went to power plants, factories, Nigeria LNG and the West African Gas Pipeline. Umar also noted that demand for cooking gas remained higher than supply.
The authority said the Obe-Obiafu-Obrikon pipeline, the midline compressor on the Escravos-Lagos Pipeline System and the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano pipeline project would help expand transportation capacity.
The projects are expected to increase gas transportation capacity from 2.2 billion cubic feet per day to 4.4 billion cubic feet per day, improving connections between southern and northern Nigeria. The AKK pipeline was reported to be more than 80 per cent complete.
Umar added that since the first revision of the code, more shippers had joined the network and imbalances on the western gas network had fallen by about 30 per cent.
Revision II also introduces clearer provisions on shrinkage factors and initial rules for proposed Trans-Saharan and Trans-African gas pipelines.
Government targets higher gas production
Oyekunle said Nigeria must move beyond being rich in natural resources towards building an economy that generates more value from them.
She cited the Gas Master Plan 2026, which targets production and supply of 10 billion standard cubic feet of gas per day by 2027 and 12 billion cubic feet per day by 2030.
The government expects increased gas utilisation to support electricity generation, industrial activity, compressed natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas adoption, liquefied natural gas exports and petrochemical production.
Officials also emphasised the importance of local content, technology development and host-community participation as the petroleum industry expands.
Fuel reserves and laboratories planned
The NMDPRA said it was in advanced discussions with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) to establish a pilot national strategic fuel reserve.
The proposed reserves would be located at National Pipeline and Storage Company depots in Ibadan, Enugu and Suleja. The initiative is intended to help protect domestic fuel supplies against external disruptions and price shocks.
Umar said three out of every four litres of petrol supplied in the country during the previous month had been refined locally, compared with more than half being imported a year earlier.
However, he warned that domestic supply remained heavily dependent on the Dangote Refinery, making it important to encourage participation by modular and state-owned refineries while allowing competitive imports through merit-based licences.
The authority also announced plans to establish nine fuel laboratories nationwide by the second half of 2027.
The first laboratory had recently been launched in Port Harcourt, with two additional facilities expected by the end of 2026. The programme is being implemented with Bureau Veritas and Ace Energy and Power Solutions, with the wider goal of developing a National Reference Laboratory.
OTL marks 20 years of downstream industry changes
OTL Africa Advisory Board Chairman Adetunji Oyebanji said the organisation’s 20-year history reflected changes in Africa’s petroleum downstream sector.
He noted that the industry had gradually moved beyond securing imports towards developing domestic supply arrangements and refining capacity.
Oyebanji cited developments in Ghana, Kenya, Egypt, South Africa and Angola as examples of changes in the region’s energy infrastructure.
He also warned that conflicts in the Middle East, insecurity along shipping routes and disruptions to Russian supplies continued to put pressure on diesel availability and freight costs.
He said reliable feedstock supplies, efficient operations and clear regulatory frameworks would be important for maintaining investor confidence and improving energy security across Africa.
