Nigerians have expressed concerns over the continued importation of petrol by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), despite the reported operational resumption of local refineries.
The NNPCL recently announced that the Warri Refining & Petrochemicals Company (WRPC), with a refining capacity of 125,000 barrels per day, is now functional.
In August 2024, Dangote Refinery commenced the supply of jet fuel and diesel to domestic marketers across Nigeria while in November, Aliko Dangote completed the refinery with a $20 billion investment, positioning it as a key player in the country’s energy sector.
In December 2024, the Port Harcourt Refinery resumed full operations after a temporary scale-down.
However, despite this development, a confidential report exclusively obtained by Nairametrics from a reliable source tracking motor tanker vessel movement disclosed that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) imported 159,000 metric tons of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) between February 1 and February 12, 2025. This triggered mixed reactions from Nigerians.
What Nigerians are saying
- Fikade Aina (@fikunademii)
A user on Instagram, Fikade Aina (@fikunademii), questioned why NNPCL continues to import large volumes of petrol despite increasing domestic refining capacity.
The user noted that while imports might serve as a temporary measure to stabilize supply, they could also undermine local refiners if domestic production is indeed sufficient.
“It seems that even with domestic refining capacity, NNPCL is importing large volumes of PMS—which raises some questions. On one hand, imports might be used as a stop-gap measure to ensure supply security. On the other, if local production is indeed sufficient, this approach could undermine domestic refiners and fuel ongoing disputes like the one with Dangote Refinery.
“This situation highlights a need for clearer policies and greater transparency in how supply needs are assessed and met. It might be worth investigating whether these imports are a temporary response to demand fluctuations or part of a broader strategy that conflicts with local production capabilities.” his comment read.
- Fesomu Idris Fiwajomi (@drfiwaj)
Another user, Fesomu Idris Fiwajomi (@drfiwaj), pointed out that importing 210 million litres in February covers six days of consumption, a notable reduction if it was the total for the month. He added that increasing crude production to 2 million barrels per day would boost the supply chain.
“210 million liters in February equates to 6 days of national consumption, if that was all they imported in February, then they’ve come a long way. If we can increase our daily crude production to 2m barrels per day, it’ll add a lot of value down the chain,” he commented.
- Nnamdi Biggie (@AkpatiNshiegbe)
On X (formerly Twitter), @AkpatiNshiegbe raised concerns over the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) spending foreign exchange (FX) on petrol imports, arguing that it contradicts the goal of strengthening local refining capacity.
“Why is the CBN spending FX on imported petrol? How does that make sense?”
Sani on X also pointed out the impact of NNPCL’s spending on the Nigerian naira, highlighting the potential long-term economic consequences of continuous forex allocation for petrol imports.
“The N407b is actually the ₦ equivalent of the $ that they spent. If they’re doing this much harm to the ₦ in just 12 days, imagine the level of damage they’re causing annually,” Sani’s tweet read.