NNPC Profit Falls to ₦462bn Despite Highest Oil Output in One Year

Nigeria's state-owned oil company, NNPC Limited, posted a profit after tax of ₦462 billion in May 2026, despite recording its strongest crude oil production in the past year.

The company's latest monthly report shows the May profit declined by ₦19 billion or 3.95 per cent, from the ₦481 billion reported in April, while revenue also fell sharply during the period.

NNPC generated ₦4.335 trillion in revenue in May, representing a decline of about ₦635 billion from the ₦4.97 trillion recorded the previous month.

The report also showed that the company remitted ₦4.858 trillion in statutory payments to the Federation Account between January and May 2026.

Despite the weaker financial performance, NNPC recorded significant improvements in upstream operations.

Combined crude oil and condensate production rose to 1.73 million barrels per day (mbpd) in May, the highest monthly output achieved by the company in the last 12 months.

Crude oil production increased to 1.47 mbpd, while condensate production remained steady at 0.25 mbpd.

The improvement continues a gradual recovery from production lows recorded late last year, when crude theft, pipeline vandalism, ageing infrastructure and operational downtime significantly affected output.

However, NNPC said production remained below its target because of several operational challenges.

According to the report, declining reservoir pressure at the Bonga field, underperforming wells, lifting constraints affecting Nembe production, maintenance activities at the Stardeep Agbami field and issues at TotalEnergies-operated assets (TEPNG) continued to limit output.

Natural gas production also maintained its upward trend.

Average daily gas production increased to 7,774 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscf/d), the highest level recorded during the review period.

The latest figure marks a steady recovery after gas production dropped to 6,284 mmscf/d in September 2025, reflecting Nigeria's growing emphasis on natural gas as a transition fuel and a major source of export earnings.

Gas sales, however, declined slightly to 4,921 mmscf/d, compared with 5,044 mmscf/d in April and 5,059 mmscf/d in March.

NNPC also reported stronger performance across its pipeline infrastructure.

The Obiafu-Obrikom-Oben (OB3) gas pipeline recorded 97 per cent availability during the month, while the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) pipeline achieved 94 per cent availability.

Overall upstream pipeline availability stood at 98 per cent.

However, downstream operations were mixed.

Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) availability at NNPC Retail Limited (NRL) filling stations stood at 57 per cent, indicating that fuel supply across the company's retail outlets remained below optimal levels.

A fuel availability heat map published in the report showed relatively stronger product availability across parts of central Nigeria and the South than in some northern and eastern states.

NNPC said it continues to address operational issues affecting production, including declining reservoir pressure, poor well performance, maintenance-related shutdowns, lifting constraints and facility reliability.

On its strategic gas infrastructure projects, the company said construction and equipment installation on the AKK Gas Pipeline Project had advanced significantly, with early gas delivery to Abuja expected later in 2026.

For the OB3 Gas Pipeline Project, NNPC reported substantial progress on the River Niger crossing following pullback operations and said the remaining section of the pipeline is expected to be commissioned before the end of the third quarter of 2026.

The company said both projects remain critical to Nigeria's plans to expand domestic gas utilisation, boost industrialisation and improve electricity generation.