Nigeria’s petrol use hits 52.9m litres daily as regulator bets on gas and modular refineries

Nigeria increased its petrol supply in November 2025 to meet end-of-year demand, even as key state-owned refineries remained shut and consumers continued to grapple with high pump prices, the latest fact sheet from the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority showed.

• Nigeria increased petrol supplies in November 2025 to meet holiday demand, despite key state refineries remaining inactive.
• Daily petrol consumption rose to 52.9 million litres, exceeding the 50 million-litre benchmark.
• Modular refineries contributed modestly, while imports bridged supply gaps amid persistently high pump prices.
• Gas supply surged, supporting power and exports, as authorities push for long-term energy reform and investment.

A report from November 2025 titled “State of the Midstream and Downstream Sector” revealed that the daily consumption of Premium Motor Spirit increased to 52.9 million litres per day from the 2025 benchmark demand of 50 million litres.

At the beginning of the month, Nigeria had 17 days of petrol sufficiency, 35 days of diesel sufficiency, and 8 days of cooking gas sufficiency.

Imports step in as domestic output lags

According to the report obtained by Business Insider Africa, the regulator attributed the “significant increase in PMS supply in November 2025” to four main factors, which are: unusually low supply in September and October, the need to rebuild stocks ahead of the festive season, additional imports by NNPC as supplier of last resort, and 12 cargoes that slipped from October into November.

While the country has long sought to cut its fuel import bill, domestic refineries still play a limited role.

The planned domestic PMS supply for November stood at 35 million litres per day, while the actual domestic evacuation from refineries averaged 23.52 million litres per day. AGO or diesel evacuation averaged 5.596 million litres per day.

The report confirmed that refineries owned by the states of Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna remained shut down.

At Port Harcourt, “no production activities” were recorded, with the facility restricted to evacuating diesel produced before its May 2025 shutdown at an average of 0.349 million litres per day. Warri and Kaduna also “remain on “shutdown.

By contrast, the modular refineries operated at relatively healthy utilisation rates. The average capacity utilisation ranged from 62.3% to 91.4%, with combined diesel output of about 0.489 million litres per day – modest volumes compared with national demand, but a sign of incremental domestic capacity.

One new refinery establishment licence and one new construction licence were issued by the NMDPRA in November, taking the total number of licensed projects to 48, including six operational private refineries.

A second train at Waltersmith refinery – which adds 5,000 barrels per day of capacity – “is currently undergoing commissioning”.

Pump Prices: $0.63–$0.68 per litre petrol, $0.66–$1.04 per kg LPG

The fact sheet also gives an overview of retail prices in major Nigerian cities. Based on indicative data for the period 1–30 November, using an average official exchange rate of approximately ₦1,440 to $1 as of early December 2025, representative petrol prices translated to roughly $0.63–$0.68 per litre.

The average actual PMS pump prices in Lagos stood at ₦910 per litre, approximately $0.63; ₦975, roughly $0.68, in Kano; and ₦982.5, about $0.68, in Maiduguri.

Abuja, Ibadan, Calabar, Enugu, and Sokoto were all clustered around the ₦927 to ₦972 per litre price bracket, approximately $0.64 to $0.67.

According to the regulator’s report, the average daily LPG supply stands at 4,958 metric tonnes, while consumption is 3,992 metric tonnes, suggesting the market is broadly in surplus.

The retail prices for November ranged from ₦950 to ₦1,500 per kilogram, which translates to about $0.66-$1.04 at current exchange rates.

On the international scene, the fact sheet puts dated Brent crude at $63.65 per barrel and gasoline at $732.52 per metric tonne for the period, to underline the global price environment in which Nigeria continues to import refined products while exporting crude.

Gas supply underpins power, industry, and exports

Beyond liquid fuels, the NMDPRA is placing greater emphasis on gas as both a domestic transition fuel and an export earner.

The average daily gas supply in November stood at 4.684 billion standard cubic feet. Of this, 2.600 Bscf per day went to Nigeria LNG’s Trains 1–6 at a utilisation rate of 73.7%, while 2.084 Bscf per day was channelled to the domestic market.

Domestically in Nigeria, key industries accounted for substantial volumes: gas-to-power plants at 0.645 Bscf/day, commercial users at 0.420 Bscf/day, and gas-based industries at 0.581 Bscf/day.

LNG exports averaged 101,555 cubic metres per day (approximately 45,966 metric tonnes), while an additional 0.121 Bscf/d is exported via the West African Gas Pipeline.

Major gas processing hubs also ran at relatively high utilisation, led by the Soku Gas Plant at 96.84%, while Gbaran-Ubie was at 71.21%.

The Escravos gas plant operated around 62% utilisation, while MPNU’s BRT facility produced 0.690 Bscf per day.

Regulator sells reform story to investors

The last page of the fact sheet steps away from the numbers and makes a pitch to investors and policymakers.

According to the NMDPRA, “verified data underscores Nigeria’s strategic transformation in the energy sector, emphasising reduced imports, strengthened domestic production, job creation, safety improvements, and economic stability.”

The Authority said it “further shows that Nigeria is taking proactive moves to secure a better energy future as it asks all stakeholders to ‘bet confidently on Nigeria.”

The November snapshot suggests a sector in transition: large volumes of petrol imported for Nigeria to stabilise supply, keeping domestic refineries mostly offline while modular plants and new private projects gradually come onstream.

At the same time, the country leans hard on gas, both as an export via NLNG and for domestic power and industry, even as households grapple with fuel prices that, once translated into dollars, stay low by global standards but high relative to local incomes.

How quickly Nigeria can turn today’s licenses, gas ambitions, and refinery projects into operational assets determines whether future NMDPRA fact sheets reflect a fundamental structural shift or just another year dependent on imported fuel.