Crude oil deliveries to Nigerian refineries declined by 6.3 per cent in September 2026, falling to 15.97 million barrels from 17.05 million barrels recorded in August, according to the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).

The drop coincided with a reduction in petrol supply, which fell by 23.4 per cent to an average of 38.7 million litres daily in September, compared with 50.5 million litres per day in the previous month.

The regulator attributed the decline in petrol supply to lower domestic deliveries and reduced imports following the exhaustion of approved import permits.

Between January and September, Nigerian refineries received a combined 156.51 million barrels of crude oil. Domestic sources accounted for 125.85 million barrels, representing 80.4 per cent of the total, while imported crude contributed 30.66 million barrels, or 19.6 per cent.

The Dangote Petroleum Refinery operated at 105.98 per cent capacity in September, processing approximately 689,000 barrels per day despite receiving about 618,000 barrels daily. The difference of roughly 71,000 barrels per day was covered through existing inventories.

Domestic refineries accounted for 73.6 per cent of petrol supplied during the month, while imported products made up the remaining 26.4 per cent.

September’s average daily petrol supply was also below the 13-month average of 49.7 million litres recorded between September 2025 and September 2026.

During that period, local refineries supplied an average of 30.4 million litres of petrol daily, representing 61.2 per cent of total supply. Imports accounted for the remaining 19.3 million litres per day, or 38.8 per cent.

The figures highlight the impact of declining crude deliveries and lower petrol imports on domestic fuel supply, despite the growing contribution of local refineries.