FG Issues 23 Refinery Licences In Four Years, Targets Additional 850,000bpd Capacity
By ESTHER McWILLIS-IKHIDE
THE Federal Government has issued 23 Licences to Establish new refineries in the four years since the enactment of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) announced on Thursday.
Speaking at the maiden conference of the Energy Correspondents Association of Nigeria (ECAN) in Abuja, themed “Four Years of the PIA: Achievements, Gaps and the Road Ahead,” NMDPRA’s Director of Legal Services, Tolurosho Joseph, said the planned refineries will jointly add more than 850,000 barrels per day to Nigeria’s current 1.125 million barrels per day refining capacity once completed.
According to him, crude supply to domestic refineries has doubled—from about 20,000bpd in 2023 to over 40,000bpd in 2025—driven by provisions of the PIA implemented since 2021. He added that locally refined product supply has also improved significantly, with PMS output rising from 1.3 billion litres in 2024 to 3.8 billion litres in 2025.
Joseph further revealed that the Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund (MDGIF) has invested ₦287 billion across 62 gas projects involving 16 companies as of October 2025. The fund also helped catalyse an additional $500 million in gas infrastructure investment through an Afreximbank partnership.
He highlighted several major projects contributing to growth in the midstream and downstream sectors, including UTM Offshore’s FLNG project, NLNG Train 7, the AKK and OB3 pipelines, AIPCC refinery, Indorama fertilizer plant, and Greenville’s LNG/LCNG facilities, among others.
On gas distribution, he said the Authority issued 10 licences covering 692km of pipelines with a combined capacity of 712 million standard cubic feet per day, serving 412 industrial customers. The infrastructure, valued at $639 million, is expected to drive broad socio-economic benefits across energy, manufacturing, and agriculture.
Joseph also announced the licensing of Nigeria’s first-ever Gas Trading Exchange, granted to Jex Market Limited in May 2025 following the development of the Gas Trading and Settlement Regulations in 2023.
He noted that efficient regulation has helped stabilise petroleum product supply, ensuring 12 to 48 days of sufficiency and eliminating nationwide fuel shortages. He added that Nigeria hosted its first West African Product Reference Market Conference in May 2025 in collaboration with S&P Global Platts, where stakeholders agreed to work towards positioning Lagos as a regional pricing and offtake hub.
Reflecting on NMDPRA’s four-year journey, he said the Authority has made “tangible progress” in strengthening regulatory oversight and advancing the objectives of the PIA, despite challenges along the way.
