Nigeria’s daily domestic petrol supply fell by 21 per cent in July despite a nine per cent increase in imports, according to the latest monthly performance report of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
The regulator said domestic petrol supply declined from 32.5 million litres per day in June to 25.8 million litres in July. Petrol imports, however, rose from 18.1 million litres to 19.7 million litres per day over the same period.
Consequently, total petrol supply fell by 10 per cent to 45.5 million litres per day in July, compared with 50.6 million litres recorded in June.
The decline occurred despite increased production by the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, which supplied an average of 25.9 million litres of petrol daily during the month.
The NMDPRA report also showed a significant reduction in domestic petrol consumption. Daily consumption dropped by 25 per cent, from 47.4 million litres in June to 35.7 million litres in July.
Diesel consumption similarly declined by eight per cent to 14.7 million litres per day, while aviation fuel consumption recorded a sharper 41 per cent fall to 1.7 million litres daily.
Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) was the exception, with consumption rising by seven per cent from 4.1 kilotonnes to 4.4 kilotonnes per day.
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Diesel Supply Records Strong Growth
Unlike petrol, diesel supply increased substantially in July, rising by 46 per cent to 23.6 million litres per day from 16.2 million litres in June.
The increase was largely driven by imports, which averaged 7.9 million litres per day in July, compared with no recorded diesel imports in June. Domestic diesel supply, meanwhile, edged down from 16.2 million litres to 15.7 million litres per day.
LPG supply also increased by four per cent to 5.3 kilotonnes per day, while aviation fuel receipts declined by 24 per cent to 1.9 million litres daily.
Crude Supply to Domestic Refineries Falls
The regulator further reported an eight per cent decline in crude oil supplied to domestic refineries, from 632,000 barrels per day in June to 585,000 barrels per day in July.
Domestic gas supply also fell by eight per cent, from 5.116 billion cubic feet per day to 4.723 billion cubic feet.
Domestic refineries processed 17.88 million barrels of crude in July, down from 19.12 million barrels in June. Of the July volume, 12.75 million barrels were sourced locally, while 5.13 million barrels came from imported crude.
The figures underscore the continuing challenges facing Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector, even as investments in domestic refining capacity, particularly the Dangote refinery, seek to reduce the country’s dependence on imported petroleum products.
