Nigeria Now Makes 87% of Its Own Cooking Gas

Families across Nigeria are cooking with homegrown fuel after local refineries supplied 87% of the country's cooking gas in 2025, a milestone that frees up precious foreign currency and boosts energy security.

The numbers tell a remarkable story. Local producers delivered 45,800 metric tonnes of liquefied petroleum gas last year while imports dropped to just 7,100 metric tonnes. That's a complete reversal from 2023, when imported gas made up nearly half of what Nigerians used to cook their meals.

The Dangote Petroleum Refinery led the charge alongside NLNG Limited and other domestic plants. Together, they ramped up production steadily throughout the year, with monthly supplies ranging from 3,200 to 4,500 metric tonnes.

Professor Wumi Iledare, a petroleum economist, sees the shift as proof that processing resources at home creates more value than exporting crude oil and buying back refined products. The approach keeps money in Nigeria while building local industry and creating jobs.

Energy security improves when a country controls its own fuel supply. Nigeria sits on massive natural gas reserves, some of which has been burned off wastefully for years. Now that gas is reaching kitchen stoves instead of disappearing into the atmosphere.

The Ripple Effect

The surge in local production does more than just reduce import bills. It stabilizes supply chains, making cooking gas more reliably available even as demand grows across the country.

Foreign exchange reserves benefit directly since Nigeria no longer needs to spend as much hard currency buying gas from international suppliers. That freed-up money can support other critical needs, from healthcare to education.

Local jobs multiply when refineries and processing plants expand operations. Engineers, technicians, truck drivers, and distribution workers all gain employment opportunities that didn't exist when imports dominated the market.

Industry leaders from the Oil and Gas Services Providers Association celebrate the progress while noting that better storage and distribution networks could help lower prices and reach more households. The infrastructure exists to produce the gas. Now the challenge is getting it affordably to every family that needs it.

New capacity coming online from existing and planned facilities suggests the trend will continue. Experts project that Nigeria could eventually eliminate cooking gas imports entirely, turning the country from a buyer into a potential exporter.

The template is clear: invest in processing capacity at home, reduce dependence on imports, and watch both economic security and national pride grow in tandem.