Nigeria's export of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly known as petrol, to the fellow West African country of Togo reached N105.5 billion in the first quarter of 2026.

Recent data shows that outside of petrol, Togo imported N278.36 billion worth of gas oil and N273.18 billion worth of kerosene-type jet fuel from Nigeria.

The value of partially refined oil, which included crude oil that had undergone initial processing, was N89.83 billion, while the value of crude petroleum oil exports was N220.14 billion.

These figures were published by the National Bureau of Statistics, Foreign Trade Statistics Report for the first quarter of 2026, as seen in the Punch Newspaper.

The export revenue is in sharp contrast to a few years back, when Nigeria, prior to being an oil-refining nation, imported approximately $117m worth of petroleum oils (petrol/refined products) from Togo in 2023, and $72–77m in 2024.

Since the inauguration of the largest single-train refinery in the world, the Dangote Refinery, Nigeria has become a net exporter of refined petroleum, supplying markets across Africa.

This milestone was first disclosed in March 2026, when data from energy intelligence firm Kpler showed that Nigeria exported about 44,000 barrels per day (bpd) of petrol during the month, slightly exceeding imports and leaving a net surplus of roughly 3,000 bpd.

At the time, the refinery had expanded Nigeria's reach into new markets. In March, it shipped a 317,000-barrel cargo of petrol to Mozambique, its first export to East Africa.

Additionally, shipment data from Kpler showed that exports from the refinery increased by about 770 per cent between April 2024 and April 2026, rising from roughly 18,000 barrels per day (bpd) at the start of operations to a record 158,000 bpd by April 2026.

This level of growth is reflected in Nigeria's fuel sales to Togo, which, for the past few days, has been a subject of contention in the public eye.

During a webinar convened by the Major Energy Marketers Association of Nigeria (MEMAN) regarding West African fuel pricing and trade dynamics, Matthew Tracey-Cook, an official from S&P Global Commodity Insights, noted that Nigerian fuel marketers are progressively importing refined petroleum products from the Dangote refinery via Lomé.

"Over the last six months, if you look at the volume of products on a waterborne basis that's imported directly into Nigeria, Dangote production has become increasingly dominant," Tracey-Cook said.

He added that between March and May 2026, "well over 70 to 80 per cent" of fuel imported into Nigeria by sea originated from Dangote before being routed through Lomé and re-imported into the country.

This immediately sparked debate online as to why fuel produced in Nigeria is cheaper to buy outside of the country than it is in its actual base of operations.

Following the backlash from the public, the Dangote Refinery stated that the claims of re-importation were false.

The company issued a response on Tuesday in a statement titled "Response to Unsubstantiated Claims and Tissue of Lies", saying it was compelled to address what it described as false narratives despite its longstanding policy of not responding to unfounded allegations.

"As a matter of policy, we do not respond to baseless and unsubstantiated claims. However, we have decided to clear the air on this ill-motivated web of falsehoods for posterity," the refinery said.

In July 2025, Africa's richest man and owner of the Dangote Refinery, Aliko Dangote, revealed that lifting refined petroleum products from the Lekki-based refinery is more expensive for oil marketers than buying from offshore storage depots in neighboring countries, such as Togo.

Speaking at the Global Commodity Insights Conference on West Africa's refined gasoline market, Dangote spoke about the economic inefficiencies that plague the local market, citing a litany of port-related costs and regulatory limits that local merchants face.

On the occasion, Dangote blamed numerous costs at the refinery's loading point and discharge at domestic terminals, which are mostly absent when marketers import gasoline from offshore facilities such as the Lomé Floating Storage Terminal.

"In terms of port charges, it is currently more expensive to load a domestic cargo of petroleum products from the Dangote Refinery, as customers pay both at the point of loading and the point of discharge. But when they load from Lome, which competes with us, they pay only at the point of discharge. This is simply unfair and unsustainable," the Nigerian billionaire relayed.

This was also reiterated by the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria National Publicity Secretary, Chinedu Ukadike.

"We don't load in Lomé, but for Nigerian distribution through the coastal route, it is easier to use the vessels here in Nigeria because it is interstate. Most of the international clearance and the rest is not applicable, because you would be able to avoid a lot of charges, both international and local charges," he stated.

"It is better to load from Dangote via both means. But if you are loading from another country, it is more difficult than when you are loading from Nigeria," he added.