Nigeria's Petroleum Products Import Crashes Sharply By 54% In Two Years - CBN Report Reveals

Nigeria recorded a massive 54 per cent drop in its spending within two years on the importation of refined petroleum products, reducing from the initial $14.58billion in the first nine months of 2023 to $6.71 billion in the corresponding period of 2025, the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Balance of Payments report has revealed 

According to data obtained from the report, the Importation of petroleum products declined from $14.58billion in the first nine months of 2023 to $11.38billion in the corresponding period of 2024, before dropping further to $6.71bn within nine months of 2025

A comparative analysis of the 2023 and 2024 full-year and the Q3 2025 Balance of Payments presentation, released by the CBN, showed a sustained moderation in fuel importation, with import bills declining year-on-year over the period under review.

The data revealed that Nigeria spent $11.38bn on refined petroleum product imports between January and September 2024, representing a $3.20bn or 21.9 per cent decline compared with $14.58bn recorded in the same period of 2023, pointing to a sharp contraction in foreign exchange outflows associated with refined petroleum products.

The downward trend accelerated in 2025, with fuel imports dropping further by $4.67bn, or 41 per cent, to $6.71bn within the first nine months of the year, marking the steepest year-on-year contraction in the period analysed.

Overall, the figures show that Nigeria spent $7.87bn less on refined fuel imports in the first nine months of 2025 than it did in the corresponding period of 2023, underscoring a significant easing of foreign exchange outflows linked to petroleum product imports.

The CBN data also showed a 41 per cent year-on-year decline in refined petroleum product imports by the third quarter of 2025, signalling early signs of import substitution as new and rehabilitated refineries scale up operations.

CBN in its report, attributed the reduction in foreign exchange spending on imports, to a series of structural reforms and market adjustments aimed at easing pressure on the country’s external reserves and stabilising the naira

The increased local capacity of petroleum products from the Multi-billion dollar Dangote Refinery in Lekki, Lagos and other modular refineries also contributed significantly to the sharp drop thus reducing pressure on the country's foreign reserve