The Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise has warned that the sharp rise in petrol imports could discourage investment in Nigeria’s downstream petroleum industry if imported products displace available domestic refining output.
CPPE said data from the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority showed average petrol imports rising from 5.9 million litres per day in May 2026 to 18.1 million litres in June and 19.7 million litres in July.
The increase from May to July amounted to roughly 234 per cent.
At the same time, CPPE said the share of domestic refining in market supply declined while imported petrol gained a larger share.
The organization stressed that it was not opposed to imports where they were needed to close genuine shortfalls caused by refinery outages, seasonal demand spikes, quality gaps or strategic stock requirements.
Its concern centered on import permits being issued without transparent evidence that domestic refiners could not meet demand at acceptable quality and competitive prices.
CPPE Chief Executive Muda Yusuf said imports should function as a supply gap mechanism rather than a parallel market capable of displacing domestic production.
He argued that refining was strategically important because it supported fuels as well as petrochemicals, fertilizer, plastics, pharmaceuticals, paints, packaging and other manufacturing activities.
The centre said excessive reliance on imports could weaken refinery utilization, jobs, foreign exchange conservation and wider industrial development.
CPPE called on the regulator to publish product by product assessments of supply gaps before approving large import volumes.
It also recommended giving qualified domestic refiners an opportunity to meet verified demand before license were issued for residual shortfalls.
Other proposals included defined validity periods for import permits and publication of monthly data on permits, landed volumes and domestic evacuation.
CPPE said its position was not a call for monopoly or blanket protection of local refiners.
Rather, it advocated predictable rules that preserved competition while giving efficient domestic producers a fair opportunity to serve the market.
Yusuf warned that frequent or unexplained changes in import policy increased uncertainty and raised the risk premium for investors considering refining, storage, pipelines, marine logistics and distribution.
The debate comes as domestic refining capacity expands and policymakers try to balance consumer supply security with industrial policy and foreign exchange conservation.
