• Profit falls 3.9% to N462bn despite improved oil, gas output
•Oil company records N4.3tn revenue
Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja
Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) yesterday announced that it remitted a cumulative N4.858 trillion to the Federation Account as of the end of May 2026, representing a sharp 30.8 per cent increase from the N3.714 trillion recorded a month earlier.
Figures contained in the NNPC Monthly Report Summary for May 2026 showed that cumulative statutory payments to the federation rose by N1.144 trillion between April and May, with Profit After Tax (PAT) declining to N462 billion from N481 billion during the period.
However, the profit of N462 billion recorded in May was despite the relatively huge revenue totalling N4.33 trillion posted by the national oil company.
The report indicated that operational performance strengthened during the month, with improvements in crude oil and condensate production, natural gas output, pipeline availability and retail station operations.
Besides, average crude oil and condensate production increased to 1.73 million barrels per day (mbpd) in May, compared to 1.68 mbpd in April, representing the highest achieved by the national oil company in at least the last one year.
It reflected sustained improvements in upstream operations after production fluctuated between 1.51 million bpd and 1.68 million bpd over the preceding months.
A breakdown of the production figures showed that crude oil output rose to 1.47 million bpd in May from 1.43 million bpd in April, while condensate production remained unchanged at 0.25 million bpd.
Natural gas production also improved during the review period, rising from 7,730 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd) in April to 7,774 mmscfd in May, an increase of 44 mmscfd or approximately 0.6 per cent.
Gas sales, however, slipped marginally despite the higher production, declining from 5,044 mmscfd in April to 4,921 mmscfd in May, representing a decrease of about 2.4 per cent.
Crude oil and condensate sales equally moderated during the month. Total sales fell from 23.65 million barrels in April to 18.95 million barrels in May, representing a decline of about 19.9 per cent. The figures showed crude oil sales of 17.99 million barrels and condensate sales of 0.96 million barrels in May.
Similarly, operational reliability across critical oil and gas infrastructure improved significantly, as upstream pipeline availability rose to 98 per cent in May, from 79 per cent recorded in April, marking a substantial 19 percentage-point improvement.
The company also reported progress on two strategic pipeline projects. According to the report, activities on the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) gas pipeline advanced with construction, installation, and pre-commissioning works progressing towards early gas delivery to Abuja in 2026.
For the Obiafu-Obrikom-Oben (OB3) gas pipeline, NNPC stated that the River Niger crossing had recorded significant progress, with pullback pre-commissioning and tie-in works underway ahead of the targeted commissioning of the full pipeline section by the end of the third quarter of 2026.
The report also showed improvements in retail operations, with the NNPC retail station availability under its performance management system improving to 57 per cent in May from 54 per cent in April.
Besides, the AKK pipeline performance indicator remained steady at 94 per cent in both months, while the OB3 project advanced to 97 per cent from 96 per cent recorded in April.
Beyond its commercial operations, the company highlighted interventions undertaken through the NNPC Foundation during the month.
Among the key initiatives was the commissioning and handover of a state-of-the-art 1.5 Tesla Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) system at Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi, on May 15.
It said the intervention, executed in partnership with GE Healthcare, included training for 40 medical personnel, comprising radiologists and radiographers, to strengthen specialist healthcare delivery and improve access to advanced diagnostic services in the South-east.
NNPC attributed the improved oil production levels to ongoing efforts aimed at resolving facility integrity constraints, reducing maintenance-related shutdowns, and improving asset reliability across its operations.
The report stated that the measures were expected to minimise production deferments, enhance operational efficiency, and sustain higher production levels in the months ahead.
