Petrol imports into Nigeria dropped by 37.3 per cent from 5.9 million litres per day in March to 3.7 million litres per day in April 2026.
This comes as local refineries led by Dangote Refinery continued dominance of the domestic market, rising this time to 91.7 percent share of the market.
This is according to the latest data released by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
The NMDPRA Factsheet shows that daily petrol supply to the domestic market rose by 10.72 per cent from 40.1 million litres in March.
On a year-on-year basis, the data indicates an 89.3 per cent increase in domestic supply of petrol when compared to 21.5 million litres per day recorded in April 2025.
Petrol consumption rose from 47.3 million litres per day in March to 51.1 million litres, reflecting an 8.03 per cent increase.
AGO Supply
The NMPDRA data shows a slight drop in average daily supply of Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), also known as diesel, from 10.3 million litres per day in March to 10.2 million litres per day in April.
Despite the slight drop, domestic supply rose sharply month-on-month from 3.9 million litres to 8.5 million litres per day, (11.7.95 per cent), while imports crashed from 6.4 million litres down to 1.7 million litres per day (73.4 per cent drop).
Despite the slight drop in daily supply of diesel, the daily consumption rose significantly from 14.5 million litres to 17.3 million litres per day.
Aviation Turbine Kerosene (ATK), also known as aviation fuel, saw an increase from 1.7 up to 2.6 million litres within the period. The consumption rose from 2.1 million litres to 2.5 million litres per day.
Refinery Performance
Analysts say the drop in imports is driven by Dangote Refinery’s rapid ramp up of production.
The refinery ran at 99.12 per cent capacity in April, hitting 100 per cent on most days.
“Dangote Refinery achieved 100% capacity utilization for most of
the days in April,” DPRA stated in its report for April.
The $20 billion refinery recorded high production (53.6 million litres per day) in April such that apart from supplying 40.7 million litres per day, it exported an average of 1.7 million litres per day, making Nigeria a net exporter of petrol.
For diesel, the refinery produced an average of 23.6 million litres per day and exported 17.8 million litres daily.
READ ALSO:
- Dangote Targets 15,000 bpd as Upstream Oil Assets Begin Crude Production
- Why Aviation Fuel Price Surged – MEMAN
- More Flight Disruptions Loom as Airlines Reel from Aviation Fuel Crisis
Domestic Refineries Record 33.4 Million Barrels Crude Supply Shortfall in Q1
Modular refineries such as Walter Smith recorded 56.4 per cent in average capacity utilization, Edo Refinery (79.20 per cent), Aradel (33.95 per cent).
The three modular refineries supplied an average of 0.559 million litres/day in the month of April 2026.
State-owned refineries (Port Harcourt, Warri, Kaduna) remain shut down, making Dangote Refinery the primary driver of this shift.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist, scholar and analyst of socioeconomic issues in Nigeria and Africa. He is skilled in energy reporting, business and economy, and holds a master's degree in Mass Communication. He can be reached via @VICTOREZEJA on X