The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has proposed new rules that would prohibit petroleum companies from coordinating fuel prices, restricting supply, or engaging in market-sharing arrangements that distort competition across Nigeria’s midstream and downstream oil and gas sector.
The proposal is contained in the newly released Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Prevention of Anti-Competitive Practices and Behaviour Regulations, 2026, a draft framework designed to strengthen competition, prevent abuse of market power, and ensure a more transparent and competitive petroleum market.
In a notice issued to the public, the NMDPRA, invited licensees, permit holders, and other stakeholders to submit comments on the proposed regulations within 21 days, in line with Section 216(1) of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, which requires stakeholder consultation before regulations are finalised.
It said a stakeholders’ consultation forum on the proposed regulations will be held at its Abuja headquarters on September 22, 2026.
According to Part IV of the draft regulations on Collusive Agreements and Anticompetitive Coordination, the Authority is seeking to prohibit any form of coordinated behaviour among petroleum companies that could undermine competition.
“No licensee, market participant, or group of undertakings in the midstream or downstream petroleum sector shall enter into any agreement, arrangement, understanding, or concerted practice—whether formal or informal, written or oral, explicit or tacit—that has the object or effect of preventing, restricting, or distorting competition,” it stated.
The draft specifically targets price-fixing and coordinated pricing behaviour, including agreements on pump prices, ex-depot prices, margins, discounts, surcharges, freight charges, and pricing formulas.
It also prohibits market allocation, where companies divide customers, territories, product lines, or geographic areas among themselves, as well as bid-rigging and collusive tendering in procurement processes.
“Price-Fixing or Coordinated Pricing Behaviour – agreeing, aligning, or coordinating prices or any pricing element, including pump prices, ex-depot prices, margins, discounts, surcharges, freight/delivery charges, or pricing formulas/benchmarks,” is strictly prohibited, the draft regulation stated.
Another major provision seeks to stop collective supply restrictions, where companies jointly reduce production, imports, throughput, or supply in ways that manipulate prices, create artificial scarcity, or distort market conditions.
The NMDPRA is also targeting tacit collusion and price signalling, including the use of public statements, trade associations, or indirect communications to influence competitors’ pricing decisions or exchange commercially sensitive information such as future prices, production plans, customer lists, or bidding strategies.
