Despite improved domestic refining capacity in Nigeria, major oil marketers have continued to import refined petroleum products, as they imported 6.38 billion litres of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) and Automotive Gas Oil (diesel) in five months.
But independent marketers and retailers, through their various associations, kicked against the development, as the importation of these commodities gulped about N6tn, a development that further piled pressure on the country’s forex.
The dealers spoke under the aegis of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria and the Petroleum Products Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria.
A detailed advertorial in The PUNCH on Wednesday quoting tanker vessels’ movement into Nigerian ports showed that fuel importers utilising scarce foreign exchange brought in over 5.01 billion litres of petrol and 1.37 billion litres of diesel between October 2024 and November 2025.
With an average price of N900 per litre, importers may have spent N4.51tn on PMS import and N1.51tn on diesel, using an average price of N1,100/litre. This indicates a cumulative amount of N6.02tn.
The six-page advert analysing the importation of PMS and AGO further disclosed that the imported products arrived through four seaports, with the Apapa and Tin Can seaports in Lagos receiving the highest amount of 3.86 billion litres of fuel.
This was followed by Port-Harcourt port receiving the second highest of 5.63 billion fuel. 1.39 billion litres of fuel berthed at the Calabar port, while the Warri received the lowest import of 389.52 million litres of fuel.
The latest development came despite the fact that Nigeria currently has a combined domestic refining capacity of 985,000 barrels per day, a figure enough to meet daily consumption of 50 million litres per day, according to the Nigerian Mid-stream and Downstream Regulatory Authority.
On November 26, 2024, the government announced that petrol production had commenced at the Port Harcourt refinery after a long period of rehabilitation. During the unveiling of the refinery, NNPC officials conducted stakeholders around the facility where they took samples of petrol, diesel, and kerosene.
It said truck loading began immediately. The Port Harcourt refinery comprises two units, with the old plant having a refining capacity of 60,000 barrels per day and the new plant 150,000bpd, both summing up to 210,000bpd.
Within the space of a month, the NNPCL also announced that the Warri refinery had commenced operation after a long period of inactivity.
“WRPC will focus on producing and storing critical products, including Straight Run Kerosene, Automotive Gas Oil, and heavy and light Naphtha,” a statement from the presidency stated.
Earlier in the year, the 650,000 bpd Dangote Petroleum Refinery commenced operations. The commencement of refinery operations prompted Nigerians and stakeholders to call for a halt in the importation of petroleum products.
However, major oil marketers have continued the importation of fuel to bridge the domestic shortfall.
An analysis of the document detailing the amount of fuel imported into the country showed that aside from the NNPC, oil marketers listed as importers during the period include BOVAS, Eternal Oil, AA Rano, Fatgbems, Matrix Energy, Ibeto, Swift, Raj, T-Time, Wosbab Energy, NorthWest, Sobaz, TS Logistics, Shorelink, Stockgap, MEJ, Nepal, Rainoil, AYM Shafa, among others.
Last month, the NNPCL Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari, said the company hadn’t imported a single litre of fuel in 2025 and has depended on local sources to supply its customers.
Further analysis revealed that in October, a total of 1,034,446 metric tonnes of PMS representing 1.39bn litres, was imported, with Lagos ports getting the highest share of 580,122 mt (777.94m litres), Calabar received 64,000mt (85.8m litres), Port-Harcourt port received 94,224mt (126.35m litres) and Warri with 296,100mt (397.1m litres).
For diesel, 285,519mt was imported, representing 335.77m litres.
In November, a total of 1,065,925 metric tonnes of petrol, indicating 1.43bn litres, was imported, while 258,000 of AGO was imported, representing 303.41m litres.
This figure reduced to 746,127 metric tonnes of petrol and 248,100 of diesel in December 2024. Applying standard conversion factors (1,341 litres per metric tonne for PMS and 1,176 litres per metric tonne for AGO), the total volume of imported fuel amounted to 1m litres of petrol and 291.77m litres of AGO.
By January 2025, the amount was further reduced to 367,199 metric tonnes for petrol and 146,866mt for AGO. This means 492.4m litres of petrol and 172.71m litres of AGO were imported.
Similarly, the recent import data for February 2025 indicates that Nigeria imported 523,300 metric tonnes of PMS and 226,086.11 metric tonnes of diesel. The total volume of imported fuel amounted to 701.75m litres of PMS and 265.88m litres of diesel.
The amount imported for petrol confirms the 50m daily shortfall data announced by the NMDPRA last month. A summation for 28 days indicated that 700m was needed for the month.
Marketers kick
Marketers of petroleum products kicked against the importation of petroleum products into Nigeria, especially as it impacts the nation’s foreign exchange.
The National President of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria, Billy Gillis-Harry, said the stakeholders have once agreed to promote local content instead of importing fuel into Nigeria, wondering why some are yet to abide by the resolution.
According to him, anyone importing fuel now could not have sourced forex from the Central Bank of Nigeria.
“We have collectively, as stakeholders, decided that we must be pro-local content. We must do everything possible to encourage local production and local consumption. I recall that all the associations took that decision under the leadership of NNPC to stop importation. So, whoever is importing at this time may not be doing that with the CBN’s dollar approval because CBN doesn’t have $600m now to give anybody to import petroleum products,” Gillis-Harry said.
According to him, stakeholders are now focused on growing the Dangote refinery, Port Harcourt refinery, and other local refineries in Nigeria.
He declared that PETROAN is not in support of importation when there is enough refining capacity.
“All of us in the industry today are focused on growing what Dangote, the NNPC are and other refineries like Azikel refinery, Edo refinery, Niger Delta refinery, Watersmith refinery. So, you can see clearly that there’s quite a lot of attraction of foreign investors in this downstream sector because it’s easy for Nigeria to become the hub of refined product exportation, which will certainly strengthen our naira and reduce our dependence on foreign exchange.
“The largest percentage of our forex expenses is for refined products. So, we don’t encourage fuel importation. We are focused on patronising Dangote refinery, the NNPC, Azikel, Edo refinery, Watersmith, Niger Delta refinery, and others,” Gillis-Harry submitted.
Similarly, the spokesperson of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Chinedu Ukadike, said IPMAN members are not the ones importing fuel into Nigeria.
According to him, independent marketers now source their products locally to promote local investments and create jobs. He described the heavy fuel importation as recounting a stage the country has passed through.
“With what is happening in this industry now, I don’t think we should be looking at the past, we should be looking at Dangote, NNPC, and other refineries. We also should be looking at other competitive industries, especially the other refineries that are springing up. The issue of importation has been settled. So, it does not have anything to do with our deregulation process. That is my own stance,” he stated.
He said independent marketers now focus on products from local refineries.
“As IPMAN, we are now focusing on products being distributed by both NNPC and Dangote. Our members are not the ones importing petrol into Nigeria. We are encouraging people to look inwards instead of looking outwards; let’s encourage our local content. This will have a very robust effect on our economy, especially in terms of growing our forex and GDP and taming the unemployment level of the country.
“We are encouraging more countries to come into Nigeria and invest in refineries and reduce unemployment while boosting the standard of living. More investment will bring more jobs into the country. We cannot be here with crude oil while we are creating jobs for other countries elsewhere. Nigeria needs these jobs. Let Nigeria’s job remain for Nigerians. So, anything that can encourage local content and drive the domestic economy, we, the independent marketers, are in support of that,” Ukadike declared.
However, the Executive Secretary of the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria, Clement Isong, stated that importation promotes competition, helping drive down the price of PMS.
Isong said he could not speak to the figures on what was imported in February, saying, “I have no understanding of these numbers.”
Commenting on fuel importation, he explained, “What importation does for us is that it contributes to the market’s competitiveness. The price movements you are enjoying and the market competition are the result of importation. Importation is useful.
“We want local refining. Let’s be clear. We want local refining. What ensures that we have the most competitive price is that locally refined fuel prices have to compete with imported prices. That is what keeps our prices at the pump as low as possible,” the MEMAN leader asserted.
(Punch)
