Nigeria has made a significant breakthrough in its energy sector, exporting Premium Motor Spirit, popularly known as petrol, worth N371.54 billion in the second quarter of 2025.

This milestone marks the first recorded shipment of the product after the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, Africa’s largest single-train refining complex, came online.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, petrol accounted for 1.63% of Nigeria’s total exports in the quarter, a remarkable shift for a country long dependent on imports due to the chronic dormancy of state-owned refineries.

The exports were primarily driven by markets in Asia and the Middle East, with 76.9% of petrol shipments going to destinations outside Africa. Only N85.83 billion, representing 23.1% of petrol exports, went to Africa, specifically within the Economic Community of West African States.

Despite this achievement, Nigeria remains a net importer of petrol, with imports standing at N2.38 trillion in Q2 2025, down 45.56% from N4.36 trillion in Q2 2024, but still nearly 6.4 times the value of exports.

Alhaji Aliko Dangote, President of the Dangote Group, confirmed that the refinery exported about 1.35 billion liters of petrol between June and July 2025, equivalent to one million tonnes.

At the Global Commodity Insights Conference on West African Refined Fuel Markets, Dangote declared that Nigeria had become a net exporter of refined products, saying, “From June to date, we have exported about one million tonnes of PMS within just 50 days.” He also noted that the refinery began shipping aviation fuel to Europe and Saudi Arabia.

Dangote dismissed allegations of monopolizing the downstream sector, arguing that his company was investing heavily to reduce Nigeria’s dependence on imports.

“Too many people with the means to contribute prefer to criticize from the sidelines while investing abroad. Our focus is to build energy independence for Nigeria and Africa,” he said.

The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority noted that Nigeria and other West African countries still import around 69% of their petrol needs, with an average of 2.05 million metric tonnes of petrol traded monthly in the region.

President Bola Tinubu framed the refinery’s output as part of a wider African push to reshape global energy markets, saying, “Africa can no longer remain a price taker for its resources. It is time to establish credible, transparent benchmarks that reflect our realities and protect our economies.”

As the refinery ramps up output, analysts expect Nigeria’s foreign exchange earnings to improve, import dependence to ease, and the country’s position as West Africa’s energy hub to be strengthened. Nigeria’s refined products are already finding traction in the United States, which imported about 630,000 barrels per day of petroleum in Q2 2025.