Nigeria’s imports of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, have significantly dropped by 67% from 44.6 million litres per day in August 2024 to 14.7 million litres by mid-April 2025. This decline is attributed to the increase in local production, according to the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).

NMDPRA Chief Executive Officer, Farouk Ahmed, revealed these figures during the sixth edition of the Meet-the-Press series at the Aso Rock Villa in Abuja. Ahmed stated, “We have seen a significant drop in fuel imports as local production ramps up. From contributing almost nothing last August, our domestic refineries are now supplying over 26 million litres per day. That’s a 670 per cent increase.”

The sharp rise in local supply is driven by the phased restart of the Port Harcourt Refining Company in late November and the increasing output from modular refineries across the country. However, Ahmed noted that despite this progress, local and imported supplies combined have only exceeded the government’s 50 million litres per day consumption benchmark twice in the last eight months – November (56 million litres) and February (52.3 million litres).

“In March, we came close with 51.5 million litres per day. But so far in April, we’ve averaged just 40.9 million litres,” Ahmed said. He clarified that NMDPRA issues import licenses based on the country’s supply needs, stating, “We are not just handing out licenses. Our import decisions are guided by real-time supply data and projections.”

This development is part of the government’s broader effort to revive local refining and reduce dependency on foreign fuel, a key aspect of President Bola Tinubu’s energy reforms under the Renewed Hope Agenda.