Production Woes Slash NNPC Profit by 60%

By Deborah Oladapo

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) has reported a significant decline in its earnings for September 2025, losing about ₦380 billion in revenue compared to the previous month.

According to the company’s Monthly Performance Report, NNPC earned ₦4.27 trillion in September, down from ₦4.65 trillion in August. The drop represents about an 8.2 percent decline in monthly revenue, largely driven by reduced oil and gas production.

Profit after tax also fell sharply by ₦323 billion, dropping from ₦539 billion in August to ₦216 billion in September — a 60 percent decrease within one month. The lower profit reflects the combined effect of weaker output, maintenance shutdowns, and delayed field start-ups.

Crude oil and condensate production averaged 1.61 million barrels per day (mbpd) in September, down from 1.65 mbpd in August. Though the reduction appears modest — about 40,000 barrels daily — it translates to nearly 1.2 million barrels fewer for the month, equivalent to roughly $100 million in lost sales at current market prices.

Of this total, crude oil output stood at 1.37 mbpd (down from 1.39 mbpd), while condensate — a lighter form of hydrocarbon often used in refining — dropped from 0.26 mbpd to 0.24 mbpd. NNPC said the fall was due to planned maintenance at the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) plant and delays in restarting OMLs 71 and 72, which had been shut in for repairs.

Natural gas production also contracted, slipping from 6,949 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscf/d) in August to 6,284 mmscf/d in September — a 9.6 percent decline. Gas sales, which form a key part of NNPC’s export and domestic supply revenue, fell from 4,201 mmscf/d to 3,443 mmscf/d, indicating lower supply to power plants and industrial users during the period.

Despite the lower output, NNPC continued to make headway on major infrastructure projects aimed at improving gas supply and energy security. The Ajaokuta–Kaduna–Kano (AKK) gas pipeline has now reached 88 percent completion, while the Obiafu–Obrikom–Oben (OB3) pipeline has advanced to 96 percent completion. The company also confirmed that a 113-kilometre segment of the OB3 line is already operational, carrying around 300 mmscf/d of gas from producers such as AHL, Platform, Chorus, and Xenergi.

In retail operations, the company’s station wetness — a measure of how many of its filling stations have fuel available for sale — stood at 77 percent, slightly lower than the 79 percent recorded in August. The decline points to tighter supply at the retail end, although fuel scarcity was not reported during the period.

Beyond its core operations, NNPC’s Foundation expanded its social investment programmes. In September alone, 2,141 smallholder farmers were trained in the North-Central zone, raising the total number trained nationwide to 7,072. The Foundation also partnered with the Nigerian Cardiac Society to provide life-saving heart procedures for 25 indigent Nigerians and offered basic life-support training to communities.

The Foundation further participated in the Africa Film Finance Forum, promoting youth entrepreneurship in the creative sector and sponsoring corps members and students to attend the event, which featured global stakeholders including WTO Director-General Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.

While NNPC maintained progress in infrastructure and social development, the September report underscores the company’s exposure to operational disruptions. A combination of maintenance downtime, delayed asset recovery, and reduced gas supply contributed to weaker performance.

Energy analysts say that with crude production still below the government’s 1.78 mbpd target, sustained investments in pipeline reliability and upstream recovery will be critical for the company to rebound in the fourth quarter.