Domestic refineries in Nigeria have purchased 112 million barrels of crude oil out of 182 million barrels offered by upstream producers between January and August 2026. This represents 61.4 per cent of the crude offered during the period. The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) disclosed this information at the 3rd Nigeria Oil Refining Summit in Lagos.
According to NUPRC, producers offered 182 million barrels against domestic refiners' declared requirement of 154.6 million barrels during the period. The volume offered was 118 per cent of the refiners' declared requirement. NUPRC attributed the gap between crude offers and completed transactions to issues including pricing, payment security, crude grade, and delivery timing.
NUPRC Chief Executive, Mrs. Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, stated that the gap does not indicate a failure by either producers or refiners, but rather a shared commercial challenge. Producers were concerned about payment security, off-take reliability, and existing export commitments, while refiners were concerned about crude availability, delivery timing, and pricing.
Eyesan said the commission would improve visibility of refinery demand and producer availability, while strengthening monitoring and compliance. The commission would also deepen engagement with stakeholders and enforce domestic supply obligations where necessary. This move aims to increase crude transactions and support the growth of domestic refining capacity.
The NUPRC chief executive disclosed that the commission had completed stakeholder consultations on a proposed domestic crude swap arrangement. Under the arrangement, producers close to export terminals could swap their domestic supply obligations with producers whose crude was closer to local refineries.
This mechanism would reduce logistics costs and delivery times, while improving crude availability and compliance. Eyesan also mentioned that NUPRC was accelerating field development and efforts to restore shut-in wells and marginal assets. Increased production is critical as domestic refineries expand their capacity and demand for crude increases.
Earlier, Mr Adegbite Falade, Chairman of the Independent Petroleum Producers Group, emphasized that Nigeria must increase crude production to sustain its growing domestic refining capacity. He stressed that the solution to rising domestic refining demand was to increase crude production rather than redistribute limited supplies.
Key points
- Domestic refineries in Nigeria bought 112m of 182m barrels offered by producers between Jan and Aug 2026.
- The gap between crude offers and completed transactions is attributed to issues including pricing, payment security, crude grade, and delivery timing.
- NUPRC plans to improve visibility of refinery demand and producer availability, while strengthening monitoring and compliance.
