By Bassey Udo
With the current daily national petrol consumption benchmark at 50 million litres, Dangote Refinery & Petrochemicals Limited (DRPL) says it has the capacity to refine and supply daily an average of 75 million litres of premium motor spirit (PMS), popularly called petrol.
A fortnight ago, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) reported in the latest edition of its Fact Sheet on the state of the midstream/downstream sector of the petroleum industry for December 2025 that the benchmark average of daily consumption of petrol stood at 50 million litres, against the total 74.2 million litres supplied during the month.
Out of the total petrol supply for the month, the NMDPRA said Dangote Refinery contributed 32.01 million litres per day, or 43.14 percent, while imports by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited and other undisclosed oil marketing companies accounted for 42.2 million litres per day, or 56.87 percent.
However, a recent report by the management of Dangote Refinery said the plant did not only have the capacity to refine and supply sufficient volume of petrol in excess of the current estimated national daily consumption, but also significantly surpassing the combined volume of supplies from domestic sources and imports.
The refinery said in a statement on Friday that the refinery, which has an installed name plate refining capacity of 650,000 barrels of crude oil per day, is capable of supplying about 75 million litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) daily.
The volume is in excess of the national daily petrol consumption by 25 million litres.
The refinery said the supply of 75 million litres of petrol would be alongside the supply of 25 million litres of Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), which is in excess of an estimated daily demand of 14 million litres.
Also, the company said it has the capacity to supply about 20 million litres of aviation fuel daily, which is significantly in excess of the estimated maximum domestic consumption of four million litres.
The refinery said the availability of volumes of these products in excess of prevailing demand would provide critical supply buffers, enhance market stability and reduce reliance on imports of petroleum products, particularly during periods of peak demand or logistical disruption.
“The management of Dangote Petroleum Refinery would like to reiterate its capability to supply to marketers and stakeholders the following petroleum products of the highest international quality standard, namely 75 million litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), 25 million litres of Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) and 20 million litres of aviation fuel daily”, the company said.
While reaffirming its commitment to full regulatory compliance and continued cooperation with the NMDPRA, Dangote Petroleum Refinery said its supply approach aligned with ongoing efforts to ensure market stability and orderly downstream operations.
The company said it believed that supplying petroleum products above estimated national consumption would reduce the need for emergency imports, strengthen inventory coverage and enhance the resilience of the domestic supply chain.
The refinery said it remained fully engaged with regulators and industry stakeholders in support of Nigeria’s national energy security objectives, as the country deepens its transition from fuel import dependence to domestic refining.
Besides, the company said it would continue to work closely with other players in the petroleum products supply market to ensure the benefits of local refining, including reliable supply, competitive pricing and improved market discipline were delivered consistently to consumers nationwide.
“With domestic refining capacity expanding, stakeholders believe Nigeria is increasingly positioned to reduce foreign exchange exposure, improve supply security and strengthen downstream efficiency through locally refined petroleum products,” the company said.
