Nigeria sits on Africa's largest proven natural gas reserves. Yet millions of Nigerian households are now paying ₦1,700 to ₦2,000 per kilogramme for cooking gas — a commodity the country produces in abundance.
The contradiction is no accident. It is the result of decades of structural neglect, export-first policies, and infrastructure gaps that analysts warn cannot be fixed quickly.
The Numbers Tell a Stark Story
Data from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) shows that in the first two months of 2026, 62 per cent of Nigeria's total gas production was exported — leaving just 38 per cent for domestic use.
Meanwhile, national demand for Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) has surged.
| Year | National LPG Demand | Domestic Supply |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 1.5 million MT | ~1.3 million MT |
| 2026 | 1.8 million MT | 1.55–1.65 million MT |
The shortfall is widening even as the Dangote Petroleum Refinery — billed as a game-changer — enters the LPG supply chain. Demand is simply growing faster than supply can keep up.
What Is Driving the Crisis
Industry analysts point to a supply chain riddled with long-standing problems.
Gas producers continue to favour export markets, where international pricing and reliable foreign exchange earnings make business far more attractive than selling to domestic consumers. The domestic pricing framework offers no comparable incentive.
On top of that, Nigeria's gas infrastructure remains grossly inadequate. The country lacks sufficient gathering, processing, storage and transmission capacity to move gas efficiently from production fields to end-users. Marine terminal bottlenecks, high transport costs, pipeline vandalism and insecurity in the Niger Delta compound the problem at every stage.
Naira depreciation and foreign exchange volatility add further pressure on import-dependent segments of the supply chain, feeding directly into retail prices.
Prices Have Risen 335% Since 2016
According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), cooking gas prices have climbed from ₦400 per kilogramme in 2016 to ₦1,741 per kilogramme in 2026 — a 335 per cent increase over a decade.
Dealers warn that further increases are likely, given that the structural challenges driving the crisis have no short-term fix.
For households already navigating inflation and a weaker naira, the cost of cooking has become a genuine financial burden. If you are managing a tight budget, the low income budget example guide offers practical frameworks that many Nigerian families are using to stretch every naira further.
Industry and Trade Bodies Sound the Alarm
The Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers (NALPGMA) has described the situation as a humanitarian crisis in the making.
In a joint statement, National President Barrister Edu Inyang and Executive Secretary Bassey Essien warned that the shortage is reversing progress on clean cooking energy, forcing households back to firewood and charcoal. They cautioned that without urgent intervention, the crisis could worsen food inflation, trigger job losses and undermine Nigeria's climate commitments.
Mazi Colman Obasi, National President of the Oil and Gas Service Providers Association of Nigeria (OGSPAN), was equally blunt in his assessment: resolving the underlying infrastructure and investment gaps will require enormous capital outlay and years — not months.
Nigeria Still Flares Gas It Cannot Afford to Waste
One of the more damaging ironies underscored by industry experts is that Nigeria continues to flare substantial volumes of associated gas — gas burned off at production sites — despite repeated government commitments to end the practice. Every cubic metre flared is gas that never reaches a household stove.
Regulatory inconsistencies and policy uncertainty continue to deter the long-term private investment the sector desperately needs. For investors and entrepreneurs watching the energy space, the side hustle in Nigeria guide explores adjacent opportunities emerging from Nigeria's energy and infrastructure transitions.
The Outlook
Analysts do not expect meaningful relief in the short to medium term. Expanding gas-processing capacity, building storage infrastructure and restructuring domestic supply incentives are multi-year projects that require both political will and significant capital.
Until those conditions are met, Nigerian consumers will continue absorbing the cost of a structural problem they did not create.
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