Stakeholders in Nigeria’s gas industry have accused the International Oil Companies (IOCs) of violating the federal government’s directive banning the export of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), commonly known as cooking gas, thereby worsening the supply crisis in the domestic market.

The federal government had in February 2024 announced a ban on the export of domestically produced LPG, with effect from November 1, 2024.

The directive, pronounced by the Minister of Petroleum Resources (Gas), Hon. Ekperikpe Ekpo, was aimed at deepening local consumption, stabilizing supply, and curbing inflation in the country’s cooking gas market.

However, almost one year after the policy came into effect, industry stakeholders say compliance remains weak, with IOCs continuing to ship LPG cargoes abroad.

At the Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers (NALPGAM) 2025 National LPG Conference & Exhibition in Lagos, panelists voiced frustration that the government’s directive has not been effectively enforced.

The session themed: “Regulatory Framework for LPG, Challenges & Opportunities”, was moderated by Adeola Yusuf, Ph.D., Team Lead of Platforms Africa.

Speaking during the session, the National President of NALPGAM, Mr. Oladapo Olatunbosun, lamented the persistent outflow of LPG despite the official ban.

“Companies prefer to export these products abroad to make more money,” Olatunbosun said.

“The domestic market does not have sufficient volumes of gas, so there is no justification for exporting the product out of the country by the IOCs,” he added.

He explained that IOCs often cite their lack of infrastructure to separate propane from butane—a requirement for blending LPG to suit domestic consumption—as the reason for exporting. According to him, while the companies had previously requested a timeframe to install such facilities, there has been little evidence of progress or regulatory monitoring.

Olatunbosun called on the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and the Ministry of Petroleum Resources (Gas) to compel the IOCs to build the required separation and storage infrastructure. Another panelist, Mr. Teryima Toryila, Executive Director of Gas, Power & Renewable Energy at AYM Shafa Holding Ltd, linked the supply bottleneck directly to the IOCs’ reluctance to domesticate LPG cargoes. He noted that Chevron, through its Escravos operations, frequently exports LPG cargoes abroad due to their gas specification of roughly 55 percent propane and 45 percent butane.

“This is the excuse often advanced by the companies to justify continued exports,” Toryila said.

“I recall that NNPC, at a time, following the order of the Minister of Petroleum Resources (Gas), began a programme to domesticate those LPG cargoes and blend them for local usage. But somewhere along the line, that programme stalled.” He urged the government to revive that initiative and work closely with NALPGAM to ensure compliance with the ban. According to him, compelling IOCs to domesticate their cargoes would help boost supply, stabilize prices, and move Nigeria closer to self-sufficiency.

Toryila also raised concerns about Nigeria’s relatively low LPG penetration, despite modest improvements in recent years. He said per capita consumption has grown from less than 2kg to about 6.5kg, but this is still inadequate for a country of over 200 million people.

“LPG penetration is largely around 25 percent. To raise per capita consumption to 10kg, Nigeria would require about 2.6 million metric tonnes annually,” he explained. (Daily Trust)