Petrol consumption rises 10.78% despite price increase, says NMDPRA

Crude imports drop 95%

By Obas Esiedesa, Abuja

Even though the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, increased, daily consumption grew by 10.78 percent in April, reaching 52.4 million litres compared with 47.3 million litres in March, according to data from the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).

Petrol averaged N1,370 per litre in April, representing a rise of about 13.8 percent from the N1,180 per litre recorded in March.

The higher consumption occurred alongside ongoing price adjustments by the Dangote Refinery, which altered its ex‑depot petrol price several times between March and April in response to shifts in global crude oil prices and market conditions.

In early April, the refinery lifted its gantry price to roughly N1,275 per litre from N1,200 per litre. Industry reports indicate that the refinery made at least five price changes within a few weeks as tensions in the international oil market pushed crude prices upward.

The Authority’s April report, released on Tuesday, showed that total petrol supply from the Dangote Refinery and imports increased by 10.7 percent, moving from 40.1 million litres per day in March to 44.4 million litres per day in April.

Specifically, supply from the Dangote Refinery rose by 19 percent to 40.7 million litres per day in April, up from 34.2 million litres per day in March, while petrol imports fell by 37.3 percent to 3.7 million litres per day in April, down from 5.9 million litres per day in March.

The report also disclosed that imported crude oil dropped by 95.65 percent to 0.41 million barrels in April, compared with 9.43 million barrels in March. Conversely, crude oil supplied by Nigerian oil companies to local refineries increased by 56 percent, reaching 17.99 million barrels, up from 11.48 million barrels in March.

NMDPRA noted that the 650,000‑barrel‑per‑day Dangote Refinery operated at 99.12 percent capacity utilisation in April, while the government‑owned refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna remained inactive.

The report further indicated that average cooking‑gas supply in April was 4,545 metric tonnes per day, with consumption at 4,818 metric tonnes per day. Gas supplied to the power sector stood at 0.549 billion standard cubic feet per day (Bscf/day), and supply to industries was 0.468 Bscf/day.

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