Nigeria may resume the issuance of petrol and diesel import permits as early as mid-February, the first batch in 2026, to ward off a possible tightening of supply in the country after a temporary halt by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), THISDAY learnt yesterday.According to industry sources quoted by Argus, the NMDPRA is expected to begin approving new import licences later this month or by early March latest. The move would mark the first approvals for 2026, following a regulatory pause aimed at limiting imports strictly to volumes required to cover shortfalls in domestic refinery output.The sources told Argus that the delay in issuing permits was partly linked to leadership changes at the authority, following the exit of its former chief executive, Farouk Ahmed, on December 17. The transition, they said, had a knock-on effect on internal decision-making, slowing approvals during the early part of the year.Under established practice, the NMDPRA issues refined product import permits on a quarterly basis, with each approval typically valid for three months, raising questions about how the framework would be applied if permits are issued almost halfway into the first quarter
Market conditions have also shifted as crude receipts at the Dangote refinery declined to about 250,000 barrels per day in January, down from roughly 350,000 bpd in December, marking a 16-month low, the report said.
The fall in deliveries suggested lower run rates at the facility’s crude distillation unit, increasing the likelihood of refined product shortfalls that imports may be needed to bridge. Argus had earlier reported maintenance activities on key processing units, including the petrol-producing Residue Fluid Catalytic Cracking (RFCC) and the Crude Distillation Unit (CDU).Although petrol demand softened during the Christmas and early January holiday period, traders have said tighter domestic supply and higher refinery asking prices have renewed interest in imported cargoes.
Asking prices for petrol jumped by about 14 per cent to N799 per litre on January 27, after earlier reductions to N699 per litre in December, making foreign barrels more competitive in recent trading sessions. Market participants said new import permits would allow marketers to supplement local supply while the regulator continues to prioritise domestic refining.