Nigeria’s dependence on imported petrol showed further signs of rebounding in July as supplies from domestic refineries dropped sharply, forcing a bigger contribution from foreign imports despite the country’s expanding refining capacity.
Latest statistics on Nigeria’s midstream and downstream petroleum operations for July 2026, published on Monday, showed that domestic petrol supply fell by 21 per cent within one month, while petrol imports rose by nine per cent.
The development points to the continuing challenge facing Africa’s largest oil producer as it seeks to replace decades of dependence on imported petroleum products with output from local refineries.
The factsheet showed that total Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, receipts declined from 50.6 million litres per day in June to 45.5 million litres per day in July, representing a 10 per cent drop.
However, the composition of the supply changed significantly. Domestic refineries supplied 32.5 million litres of petrol daily in June, but this fell to 25.8 million litres per day in July.
