Nigeria imported Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) also known as petrol worth N3.3 trillion in the last three months of 2024.
This is despite the increase in in-country refining capacity. This comes as the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) also issued licences for three new refineries in Edo, Delta, Abia states, expected to have a combined refining capacity of 140,000 barrels per day.
This comes as the Nigerian MiAccording to an X post by the NMDPRA on its official page, the proposed refineries that have been issued licenses are a 100,000 bpd refining license to Eghudu Refinery Ltd in Edo state, MB Refinery and Petrochemicals Company Ltd license to establish a 30,000 bpd refinery in Delta State, and a 10,000 bpd refinery issued to HIS Refining and Petrochemical Company Ltd. in Abia.
Upon completion, the three proposed refineries will have a combined refining capacity of 140,000 barrels per day.
The NMDPRA, in the post on its X handle said the Authority chief executive, Farouk Ahmed presented a License to construct a 100,000 bpd refinery to Eghudu Refinery Ltd in Edo state, a License to establish a 30,000 bpd refinery to MB Refinery and Petrochemicals Company Ltd in Delta state, and a License to establish a 10,000 bpd refinery to HIS Refining and Petrochemical Company Ltd. in Abia state.
“These Licenses, which would add 140,000 barrels per day to Nigeria’s domestic refining capacity, were presented to the MDs of the companies,” the agency stated.
Meanwhile, data sourced from the latest report by the country’s bureau of statistics (NBS) revealed that petrol topped Nigeria’s most traded commodities imported during the quarter. However, it recorded a 0.495 per cent decline during the review period.
Energy analysts say that Nigeria is severely impacted by the high cost of imported fuel, which puts a drain on the country’s resources and exacerbates its economic problems.
It was anticipated that the recent start of operations at the Dangote Refinery and the restoration of state-owned refineries would lessen the nation’s dependency on imported petrol. However fuel imports have continued unchecked, raising worries about a sustained reliance on foreign fuel sources.
“By allowing fuel imports, we export jobs and economic value to foreign countries. This is not in the best interest of Nigeria,” said, a senior industry executive.
Despite rising local refinery production, data from the NMDPRA shows changes in supply volumes and daily averages, indicating a substantial reliance on imports.
Although statistics reveal significant fluctuations throughout the year, fuel imports have been essential in supplying Nigeria’s fuel needs. The volume of imports in January 2024 was 1,357,044,721 litres, and in February it dropped slightly to 1,343,509,376 litres.
In March, imports surged to 1,461,889,416 litres, reversing the trend and indicating a greater reliance on outside sources. Further swings were observed in the following months, as imports fell to 1,288,974,567 litres in April before progressively rising to 1,313,440,530 litres in May and 1,398,411,753 litres in June.
With a peak in October of 1,524,565,174 litres and a large decline in November of 1,253,477,626 litres with a minor recovery to 1,482,726,064 litres in December, the second half of the year saw further remarkable fluctuations.
Despite efforts to increase local refinery production, Nigeria’s reliance on foreign petrol supplies has been strengthened by the country’s 13.76 billion litres of petrol imports during the course of the year.
The dependence on imported petroleum was further highlighted by the fact that local refinery production remained relatively low as compared to import levels. Only 794,369,526 litres of fuel were produced by local refineries between January and May 2024, which is a much smaller amount than the amount imported.
January had the lowest production throughout this time, at 90,498,122 litres, while May had the greatest, at 286,074,494 litres. The entire amount of petrol produced throughout the year, including both imports and domestic refinery production, was 14,553,681,578 litres, according to NMDPRA data.
With substantial peaks in some months, especially October and December, the supply trended similarly to import trends. Additionally variable was the daily average petrol supply, which ranged from 42.3 million litres in May to a peak of 56 million litres in October. The overall daily average supply for the year stood at 43,775,636 litres, reinforcing the need for stable supply mechanisms to meet national fuel consumption needs.
Data from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) showed that Nigeria has nine operational refineries, which include the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE, the Warri Refinery and Petrochemical Company, the Kaduna Refinery and Petrochemical Company, and the Port Harcourt Refinery Company Limited.
Others are the Aradel Refinery, OPAC Refineries, Waltersmith Refinery and Petrochemical Company, Duport Midstream Company Limited, and the Edo Refinery and Petrochemical Company.
These refineries have a combined refining capacity of 974,500 barrels per day, with the Dangote refinery having the largest capacity of 650,000 bpd. However, the majority of the refineries are not producing at full-scale
According to the NUPRC, the nine refineries would require a combined daily crude supply of 770,500 bpd and 123,480,500 barrels in the first half of 2025.
