Nigeria’s petrol consumption drops 25% in July — NMDPRA

Nigeria recorded a sharp drop in domestic petrol supply and consumption in July 2026, even as inventory levels improved across major petroleum products.

The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) disclosed this in its latest data.

The regulator’s July 2026 Factsheet shows that daily domestic Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) supply fell 21% month-on-month to 25.8 million litres per day (lpd), down from 32.5 million lpd in June.

Consumption tumbled even further, falling 25% to 35.7 million lpd compared to 47.4 million lpd the previous month.

Despite lower supply and demand, petrol stock sufficiency rose from 19.7 days to 22.4 days, reflecting a stronger buffer against potential market disruptions.

What the report is saying

The NMDPRA said total daily PMS receipts declined from 50.6 million lpd in June to 45.5 million lpd in July, representing a 10% decrease.

• The reduction was driven mainly by lower domestic supply, which fell by 6.7 million lpd.
• Imported PMS, however, increased by 9% from 18.1 million lpd to 19.7 million lpd during the period.
• The regulator’s data also showed a sharp increase in diesel receipts. Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) receipts climbed 46% from 16.2 million lpd in June to 23.6 million lpd in July.
• Domestic AGO supply edged down 3% to 15.7 million lpd, while imports rose from zero in June to 7.9 million lpd in July.
• AGO consumption declined by 8% from 16 million lpd to 14.7 million lpd.

Aviation Turbine Kerosene (ATK) recorded an even steeper drop in demand, with consumption falling 41% from 2.9 million lpd to 1.7 million lpd.

• LPG was the exception among the major products tracked. Consumption increased 7% from 4.1 million litres per day to 4.4 million litres per day.

The decline in consumption was accompanied by stronger inventory cover for petrol and diesel.

• PMS stock sufficiency increased 14% from 19.7 days in June to 22.4 days in July, while AGO stock cover rose 25% from 37.1 days to 46.5 days.

The improvement indicates that available stocks were sufficient to cover a longer period of demand despite lower product supply during the month.

• LPG receipts also increased by 4% from 5.1 kilotonnes per day to 5.3 kilotonnes per day. Domestic LPG supply rose 22% from 3.6 kilotonnes per day to 4.4 kilotonnes per day, while imports declined 40% from 1.5 kilotonnes to 0.9 kilotonnes per day.

The broader supply picture was weaker for other products. ATK receipts fell 24% from 2.5 million lpd to 1.9 million lpd, while domestic gas supply declined 8% from 5.116 billion cubic feet per day (bcfpd) to 4.723 bcfpd.

Dangote Refinery remains major supplier

The NMDPRA data also provided details of production and distribution from the Dangote Refinery during July.

• The refinery produced 25.9 million lpd of PMS, while domestic receipts stood at 25.8 million lpd. It exported 3.4 million lpd and ended the month with a PMS stock of 446.1 million litres.
• For AGO, production averaged 19.1 million lpd, compared with domestic receipts of 15.7 million lpd and exports of 11 million lpd. Closing stock stood at 162.3 million litres.

The refinery also produced 15.6 million lpd of ATK. Domestic receipts were 1.9 million lpd, while exports stood at 11.6 million lpd, leaving closing stock of 217.4 million litres.

Get up to speed

Nairametrics earlier reported that Nigeria’s crude oil production remained above 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd) for the third consecutive month in July 2026 despite a decline from the previous month.

This is according to the latest Monthly Oil Market Report released by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).

• Nairametrics earlier reported that Nigeria’s average daily crude oil production increased to 1.530 million bpd in May 2026, marking the first time in 2026 that the country returned above its OPEC production quota since mid-2025.

The increase in crude oil production has coincided with higher domestic crude supplies to local refineries as Nigeria continues efforts to strengthen its refining and energy supply chain.

• Domestic crude oil and condensate supply to local refineries reached 97.4% in the second quarter of 2026.

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) said 53.7 million barrels were supplied to local refiners between April and June

What you should know

Earlier this year, NUPRC declared the nation’s total petroleum reserves at 37.01 billion barrels of crude oil and condensate, alongside 215.19 trillion cubic feet (TCF) of natural gas as of January 1, 2026.

• Also, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited said it plans to grow Nigeria’s gas reserves from the current 210 trillion cubic feet to about 600 trillion cubic feet.

The agency recently stated that Nigeria remains on course to achieve its target of producing 3 million barrels of crude oil per day by 2030.