The Dangote Petroleum Refinery supplied about 50 million litres of petrol daily to Nigeria’s domestic market in the first half of 2026, as the facility expanded production and exports to international markets.
This was disclosed in the Dangote Group’s H1 2026 Macroeconomic Report, titled Between Windfall and Inflation, prepared by its Economic Research and Intelligence Unit.
According to the report, daily petrol supply reached a record 56 million litres in April, against a planned evacuation of about 1.1 million tonnes monthly.
The report revealed that the refinery’s capacity utilisation rose from about 45 per cent in early 2025 to between 98 per cent and 101 per cent from April to June 2026.
Its processing capacity was also rerated from 650,000 to 700,000 barrels per day in June, reflecting the expansion of its refining operations.
“By the first half of 2026 the plant was supplying on the order of 50 million litres of petrol a day to the domestic market (a record 56 million litres a day in April, against a planned evacuation of about 1.1 million tonnes a month), alongside some 25 million litres a day of diesel and up to 29 million litres a day of jet fuel and exporting a growing surplus of refined product across West Africa and beyond,” the report stated.
The report noted that the higher output enabled the facility to meet a substantial portion of Nigeria’s domestic petroleum demand while expanding exports of diesel, aviation fuel and other refined products.
It further disclosed that Nigeria’s refined petroleum product exports rose by 51 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2026.
The expansion of domestic refining capacity has significantly reduced Nigeria’s dependence on imported petrol, although the country still receives supplies from international markets.
According to the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Nigeria’s average daily petrol imports fell by 26 per cent to 14.6 million litres in August 2026, from 19.7 million litres in July.
In the same month, the Dangote Refinery recorded average capacity utilisation of 105.21 per cent. It produced 41.94 million litres of petrol, 18.01 million litres of diesel and 24.48 million litres of aviation fuel daily.
Domestic petrol receipts averaged 35.87 million litres daily, while exports stood at 9.73 million litres. Closing stock reached 360.4 million litres.
For diesel, daily domestic receipts stood at 12.37 million litres against exports of 8.75 million litres. Aviation fuel exports averaged 21.30 million litres daily, compared with domestic receipts of 3.07 million litres.
The rise in domestic refining has also coincided with a sharp fall in Nigeria’s petrol import spending.
Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed that the country’s petrol import bill dropped by 96.15 per cent to ₦87.40 billion in the first quarter of 2026, from ₦2.27 trillion in the corresponding period of 2025.
Beyond supplying Nigeria’s domestic market, the Dangote Refinery has expanded exports to Europe. This has reversed part of the historical trade pattern under which Nigeria imported refined petroleum products from international markets.
The refinery’s growing presence in European markets has been reflected in increased jet fuel shipments and sales to the continent.
The Dangote Group report disclosed that the refinery became Europe’s largest single supplier of jet fuel in June and July. It exported more than 400,000 tonnes to the continent in July alone.
In mid-September, the Chairman of Dangote Petroleum and Petrochemical Limited, Aliko Dangote, disclosed that the refinery had sold out its jet fuel supply to European markets for August and September, with the remaining stock reserved for Nigeria.
In August, Nigeria’s seaborne refined petroleum exports to Europe surged by about 767 per cent to 130,000 barrels per day in the second quarter of 2026, compared with 15,000 barrels per day in 2023.
Meanwhile, Dangote is planning another large-scale refinery in Kenya. The proposed $17 billion facility is expected to be located in Lamu.
