NMDPRA Data Show Rising Reliance on Gasoline Blendstocks Despite Strong Crude Supply
The operational profile of Nigeria’s Dangote Petroleum Refinery is increasingly shaped by a rising use of imported gasoline blendstock, according to new regulatory data, even as the facility continues to post strong production figures and high utilisation rates.
Figures from the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) indicate that the 650,000 barrels-per-day facility imported about 1.46 billion litres of gasoline blendstock and intermediate products between January and May 2026, despite receiving both domestic and imported crude oil within the same period.
These imports, which fluctuated month to month, appear to have played a supporting role in sustaining petrol output levels that, in some months, exceeded the refinery’s nameplate capacity.
Blendstock Imports Swing as Crude Supply Patterns Shift
Industry data show a volatile pattern in imports over the five-month period. In January, the refinery brought in 658.31 million litres, the highest monthly volume recorded for the year so far. This was followed by a sharp drop to 306.89 million litres in February and further down to 102.35 million litres in March, before rising again in April and May.
By May, imports had climbed to 240.59 million litres, representing a 63.3 per cent increase from April’s 147.37 million litres.
Analysts say the pattern reflects a refinery adjusting its feedstock strategy in response to changing crude availability and production targets, rather than a linear dependence on imports.
What Blendstocks Do Inside the Refining System
Gasoline blendstock is not finished petrol. It is an intermediate stream used to enhance refining flexibility and improve the quality and volume of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) produced.
As explained in industry materials, these components are blended with refinery outputs and additives to meet required fuel standards, particularly octane and environmental benchmarks.
They typically include reformate, alkylate, naphtha and other high-octane streams that help refiners optimise production yields.
Output Levels Stay High Despite Crude Shortfall
The refinery’s production data suggest strong operational momentum even when crude receipts fall below theoretical full-capacity requirements.
In May, for example, total crude receipts stood at 17.92 million barrels, below the estimated 20.15 million barrels required to fully run a 31-day month at 650,000 barrels per day.
Yet, the facility still recorded an average capacity utilisation of 101.25 per cent, according to the NMDPRA report.
During the same month, the refinery produced an average of 44.7 million litres of PMS daily, supplying 41.5 million litres to the domestic market, with a closing stock of 9.4 million litres.
Other outputs included 24.5 million litres of diesel daily, of which 18.2 million litres were supplied locally, while 6.5 million litres were exported. Aviation fuel production stood at 21.9 million litres daily, with 17.5 million litres exported and 2.8 million litres supplied locally.
Crude Supply and Import Mix Remains Central to Operations
Between January and May, crude inflows fluctuated significantly, peaking at 20.92 million barrels in March before settling at 17.92 million barrels in May.
The composition also shifted between domestic and imported sources. In May, domestic crude supplied was 15.84 million barrels, while imported crude accounted for 2.08 million barrels.
Despite stronger domestic supply levels in some months, the refinery still supplemented its operations with imported intermediates, particularly when crude intake fell below optimal thresholds.
State-Owned Refineries Still Idle
The report also confirmed that Nigeria’s state-owned refineries remain non-operational.
The Port Harcourt Refining Company, Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company, and Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company were all listed as “under shutdown status” as of May 2026.
This leaves Dangote Refinery as the dominant operational refining hub in the country and a key supplier of locally refined petroleum products.
“This is actually common practice all over the world” — Expert
Energy expert and Professor at the University of Lagos, Dayo Ayoade, described the use of blendstocks as standard global refining practice, stressing that it is primarily about efficiency and product quality rather than substitution for crude oil.
He explained:
“Gasoline feedstocks are unfinished petroleum streams such as straight run naphtha, butane, reformate, fluid catalytic gasoline and different types of streams that are basically combined and blended eventually to meet the regulatory standards of Premium motor spirit, which the Petroleum Industry Act alludes to.”
He added that such practices are widely adopted across global refineries:
“This is actually common practice all over the world; there is no issue. It is not cheating or any problems. Like all refineries in the world, blended gasoline feedstock will allow a refinery to improve the quality of its petroleum products, e.g., Euro V quality fuel that has low sulphur, which is the acceptable type of fuel we need in the market now.”
Ayoade also noted that blendstocks help stabilise operations when crude supply is inconsistent:
“It is also used to optimise the operational base of the refinery because they use it to maximise the output of the refinery units like the catalytic crackers or hydrocarbon crackers to ensure that they are producing.”
However, he warned that economic implications remain important:
“The refinery also wants the secondary unit to work at full capacity so when they import the kind of blends, it will allow the refinery to continue to work, especially where crude supply is not as stable as you would want it to be.”
“The only issue is what is likely the production impact. There are larger consequences of costs. The refinery is now at capacity, but the importation means we are leaking foreign exchange.”
Balancing Efficiency Gains With FX Concerns
While the refinery’s rising output strengthens domestic fuel availability and reduces reliance on imported finished petrol, analysts note that continued importation of blendstocks introduces foreign exchange exposure.
Ayoade cautioned that this could distort public perception of the refinery’s operations:
“The importation also allows detractors or enemies of the refinery to say that the refinery is importing finished PMS, which is not true.”
Outlook
With petrol production consistently above 40 million litres per day and blendstock imports rising again in May, the data suggests a refinery operating at high intensity while dynamically balancing crude availability with imported intermediates.
As Nigeria’s broader refining system remains largely dependent on a single operational mega-refinery, the role of imported blendstocks is likely to remain a significant—though debated—feature of the country’s evolving fuel supply chain.