The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) said refineries received more than 127 million barrels of crude through September 2026, while the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported lower inflation without linking it to deliveries.
The commission’s Oct. 26 release put second-quarter deliveries at 53.7 million barrels of crude oil and condensate, with overall performance of 97.4%. In the third quarter, refineries received 45.1 million barrels, with performance of 76.2%. NUPRC said commercial disagreements between producers and refiners affected first-quarter supply.
Nigeria’s headline inflation rate was 14.63% year over year in September, compared with 15.39% in August, the NBS said. Month-on-month inflation slowed to 0.06% from 0.71%. The bureau’s report did not attribute the change to refinery deliveries.
Section 109 of the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021, treats domestic crude supply as a commercial exchange between buyers and willing suppliers. It covers sales to holders of operating refinery licenses, calls for negotiations to consider international prices for comparable grades and includes payment guarantees.
In an Oct. 29 opinion article, Osa Victor Obayagbona argued in BusinessDay that reliable crude supplies at competitive prices could reduce refinery production and distribution costs. He described potential savings as a more sustainable alternative to broad fuel subsidies. The commission’s transport-cost estimate and the inflation data do not quantify any effect on petrol or diesel prices or how much savings could reach consumers.
NUPRC said it is consulting on a domestic crude-swap framework. The commission estimates that obtaining crude from a nearer suitable production or export point could lower transport costs by $3 to $4 per barrel. The estimate concerns logistics rather than pump prices, and NUPRC has not announced a timetable for completing its consultations.
