• Drives seven-fold rise in Nigeria petroleum product exports, says EIA

Nigeria’s refining sector recorded a major operational shift in July as Dangote Refinery halted the intake of gasoline blendstock and intermediates, while domestic petrol supply fell by 21 per cent despite higher import receipts and improved fuel stock levels.

Meanwhile, seaborne petroleum product exports from Nigeria have grown seven-fold since 2023, as output from the Dangote refinery improved regional fuel trade flow and boosted supplies to Europe and Africa, the United States (U.S.) Energy Information Administration (EIA) said yesterday.

The Midstream and Downstream Statistics for July 2026 published yesterday by the Nigerian Upstream Midstream Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) showed that the intake of intermediates and gasoline blendstock fell to zero million litres in July, from 48.27 million litres in June.

The stoppage follows months of fluctuating intake, which stood at 658.31 million litres in January before falling sharply in subsequent months, briefly recovering in May and then dropping to zero.

The development came as domestic Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) receipts declined from 32.5 million litres per day (ML/D) in June to 25.8 ML/D in July, representing a 21 per cent reduction.

Although PMS imports increased by nine per cent, from 18.1 ML/D to 19.7 ML/D, the increase was insufficient to offset the decline in domestic receipts. Consequently, total daily PMS receipts fell by10 per cent, from 50.6 ML/D to 45.5 ML/D.

The report also showed that Dangote operated at an average capacity utilisation of 71.09 per cent during the period.

The refinery produced 25.9 ML/D of PMS in July, with 25.8 ML/D supplied to the domestic market and 3.4 ML/D exported. It closed the month with 446.1 million litres of PMS in stock.

Diesel and aviation fuel recorded stronger export volumes as Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) production stood at 19.1 ML/D, with 15.7 ML/D supplied domestically and 11 ML/D exported. Closing diesel stock stood at 162.3 million litres.

Aviation Turbine Kerosene (ATK) production reached 15.6 ML/D, with 11.6 ML/D exported, 1.9 ML/D supplied domestically and closing stock of 217.4 million litres.

Across the wider refining industry, crude oil receipts by domestic refineries fell by eight per cent, from 0.632 million barrels per day in June to 0.585 million bpd in July.

Monthly crude deliveries also remained below the year’s peak. Total crude receipts reached 20.92 million barrels in March before declining to 17.88 million barrels in July, comprising 12.75 million barrels of domestic crude and 5.13 million barrels of imported crude.

Despite lower domestic petrol receipts, fuel inventories strengthened as PMS stock sufficiency increased by 14 per cent to 22.4 days, while AGO stock sufficiency rose by 25 per cent to 46.5 days.
The report also pointed to weaker consumption across most petroleum products.

The report noted that consumption figures reflect products trucked into the domestic market, while domestic gas supply statistics include volumes supplied to the NLNG plant.

SEABORNE petroleum product shipments from Nigeria averaged 561,000 barrels per day in the second quarter of 2026, compared with a yearly average of 79,000bpd in 2023, Vortexa data showed.

Of those shipments, 350,000 bpd were exported during that ⁠period, compared with a yearly average of 46,000bpd in 2023.

Dangote Petroleum Refinery, located in the Lekki Free Zone, began operations in 2024 and is the country’s largest refinery.

With the increased supply of petroleum products in Nigeria from the country’s largest refinery, imports fell, exports increased, and Nigeria became more self-sufficient in refined petroleum products, EIA said.

Product shipments expanded after operations at Dangote began and following the completion of maintenance ⁠and expansion in February 2026, coinciding with supply constraints out of the Strait of Hormuz, EIA added.

The maintenance increased the facility’s crude oil distillation capacity from 650,000bpd to 700,000bpd.

Intra-country shipments rose to 211,000 bpd in Q2 2026, from 81,000 bpd in 2025 and 33,000bpd in 2023.

Nigeria’s seaborne petroleum product exports to Europe rose to 130,000bpd in Q2 ⁠2026 from 40,000 bpd in 2025 and 15,000bpd in 2023, while exports to Africa climbed to nearly 120,000bpd from 89,000bpd a ⁠year earlier.

Nigeria imported nearly 400,000bpd of petroleum products in 2023, and seaborne imports fell to less than 130,000bpd in Q2 of 2026.