Data from the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has shown that the Dangote Petroleum Refinery exported about 434 million litres of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) in March 2026.
Analysis of the NMDPRA March 2026 fact sheet on the state of the downstream sector showed that the refinery produced a total of 1.49 billion litres of petrol during the month, while only 1.06 billion litres were supplied to the domestic market, leaving a substantial export surplus.
The report indicated that the refinery operated at an average capacity utilisation of 93.62 per cent, reinforcing its position as the dominant supplier of refined petroleum products in Nigeria.
A breakdown of the figures showed that the refinery produced an average of 48.2 million litres of petrol per day, translating to 1.49 billion litres for the 31-day period. Of this volume, 34.2 million litres per day, totalling 1.06 billion litres, was supplied locally.
This means that about 434 million litres of petrol were exported within the period,
Despite the impressive performance of the Dangote refinery, Nigeria’s state-owned refineries remained largely dormant during the period under review.
The Port Harcourt Refining Company was shut down, although it recorded minimal evacuation of previously produced diesel at an average of 0.048 million litres per day. The Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company and the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company were also not operational.
In contrast, modular refineries contributed only marginally to the country’s fuel supply. Data showed that three operational modular refineries—Walter Smith, Edo Refinery, and Aradel—jointly supplied an average of 0.629 million litres per day of diesel in March.
