Uche Cecil Izuora
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has confirmed crude supply shortage to local refineries in the first quarter of 2026.
According data from the Commission, crude oil producers supplied the refineries with less than half of the volumes allocated under the domestic crude supdata initiative in the first quarter of 2026, as pricing disputes continued to hamper deliveries.
The Commission said 61.9 million barrels of crude were allocated to domestic refineries during the quarter under the Domestic Crude Supply Obligation, while producers offered 68.7 million barrels.
Actual supply, however, stood at 28.5 million barrels, equivalent to about 46 per cent of allocated volumes and around 41per cent of volumes offered.
The figures highlight continuing challenges in Nigeria’s push to increase local refining and reduce reliance on imported fuels, despite reforms under the Petroleum Industry Act aimed at improving domestic crude availability, Reuters reported.
The shortfall has underscored concerns raised by the Dangote refinery over unreliable domestic crude supply and pricing disagreements, analysts said, constraining output at Africa’s largest refinery and weakening Nigeria’s push to capture more value from its oil production.
The regulator attributed the gap between offered volumes and actual deliveries mainly to pricing differences between crude producers and domestic refiners. It said transactions continue to operate on a “willing buyer, willing seller” basis.