NNPC profit drops 48% to N279bn as July revenue falls

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd.) reported a substantial decline in profit after tax (PAT) for July 2026, recording N279 billion, a 47.9 per cent decrease from the previous month's figure of N535 billion. This marks the lowest monthly profit for the company since March 2026, when it recorded N276 billion. The drop follows a period of steady growth, with PAT rising from N236 billion in February to N276 billion in March, N481 billion in April, N462 billion in May, and peaking at N535 billion in June. Revenue for July 2026 also saw a notable decline, decreasing from N4.389 trillion in June to N3.087 trillion, a 29.7 per cent drop. This trend reflects broader fluctuations in the company's financial performance throughout the year, with revenue varying from N5.571 trillion in January to N2.680 trillion in February, N2.774 trillion in March, N4.971 trillion in April, N4.335 trillion in May, and finally settling at N3.087 trillion in July. These variations align with changes in hydrocarbon production and sales, which have been affected by multiple operational challenges. Crude oil and condensate production averaged 1.68 million barrels per day (mbopd) in July, down from 1.72 mbopd in June, a 2.3 per cent decline. Natural gas output also dropped, reaching 7,489 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd) in July, compared to 7,841 mmscfd in June, a 4.5 per cent reduction. NNPC cited several factors contributing to these declines, including facility outages, equipment unavailability, pipeline incidents, and other production constraints. Sales of crude oil and condensate fell sharply to 22.53 million barrels in July from 28.23 million barrels in June, marking a 20.2 per cent drop. Similarly, gas sales decreased to 4,581 mmscfd from 4,970 mmscfd over the same period. Despite these setbacks, NNPC noted an increase in statutory payments to the Federation. Cumulative payments from January to July 2026 totaled N7.913 trillion, up from N6.286 trillion between January and June, indicating an additional N1.627 trillion contributed in July alone. The company also maintained 100 per cent upstream pipeline availability for the second consecutive month, underscoring its commitment to maintaining operational efficiency despite the challenges faced. Looking ahead, NNPC has outlined plans to sustain high facility uptime through preventive maintenance programs and reduce unplanned downtime. The company is focusing on optimizing export operations at FEPL and Nembe EP, delivering incremental production opportunities across its portfolio, restoring barging operations at Obodo, and activating tandem offloading operations at Akpo and Erha. Additionally, NNPC highlighted progress on key infrastructure projects, such as the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) gas pipeline, which has entered the early gas stage with construction and installation works advancing towards delivering early gas to Abuja this year. The Obiafu-Obrikom-Oben (OB3) gas pipeline has also completed pre-commissioning activities, preparing for first gas delivery in August 2026.