By By Elizabeth Ugbo
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) generated N33.15tn in revenue between January and September 2026, representing a 28.3 per cent decline from N46.26tn recorded during the same period in 2025. The company disclosed this in its September 2026 Monthly Operations and Financial Report released on Tuesday. The decline reflects revenue pressures despite improved September earnings and increased hydrocarbon production.
NNPC Revenue Drops by N13.11tn in 2026
NNPC generated N33.15tn in the first nine months of 2026, compared with N46.26tn in 2025.
This represents a revenue shortfall of approximately N13.11tn. Consequently, the company recorded weaker cumulative earnings despite a recovery in September.
A breakdown of its 2026 revenue showed N2.571tn in January, N2.680tn in February and N2.774tn in March.
Revenue subsequently increased to N5.105tn in June before declining to N3.087tn in July.
However, the company recovered in August and September. It generated N3.737tn in August and N4.608tn in September.
The September figure represented a 23.3 per cent increase from August. It also marked the company’s strongest monthly revenue since April.
September Profit Rises to N509bn
Despite the revenue challenges, NNPC recorded an improvement in its September profitability.
The company posted N509bn in profit after tax, representing an 18.1 per cent increase from N431bn in August.
This improvement highlights stronger monthly profitability despite the decline in cumulative revenue.
Meanwhile, NNPC’s 2025 full-year financial results showed a 24 per cent revenue decline.
Its revenue dropped to N34.5tn in 2025 from N45.1tn in 2024.
Nevertheless, profit after tax increased by 33 per cent to N7.2tn from N5.4tn.
Similarly, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation rose by 22 per cent to N18tn.
NNPC Production Increases in September
NNPC also reported improved hydrocarbon production during September 2026.
Total hydrocarbon production reached 3.04 million barrels of oil equivalent per day.
This represented an increase from 3.01 million barrels recorded in August.
Crude oil and condensate production stood at 1.70 million barrels per day.
Meanwhile, natural gas production increased to 7,789 million standard cubic feet per day.
The company had recorded 7,680 million standard cubic feet per day in August.
These figures indicate improved production performance despite the company’s declining revenue.
NNPC Remits N11.14tn to Federation Account
NNPC paid N11.14tn into the Federation Account between January and September 2026.
This represented an increase of 17.4 per cent compared with the N9.49tn recorded through August.
The September payment added approximately N1.65tn to the cumulative statutory remittances.
However, comparisons with 2025 figures revealed a slight decline in year-to-date payments.
NNPC remitted approximately N11.56tn between January and September 2025.
Therefore, its 2026 statutory payments were about N417bn lower.
This represents a 3.6 per cent decline compared with the corresponding period last year.
The statutory payments represent NNPC’s contributions to the Federation Account. They differ from the company’s revenue and profit figures.
Revenue Performance Remains Under Pressure
NNPC’s September performance showed signs of recovery after weaker earnings in previous months.
However, the improvement could not reverse the revenue shortfall accumulated throughout 2026.
The company generated significantly less revenue during the first nine months than it earned in 2025.
Nevertheless, increased hydrocarbon production and improved September profitability provide positive indicators.
The coming months will show whether NNPC can sustain its production gains and strengthen its financial performance.
