Nigeria earned $6.22 billion from gas exports in the first half of 2026, a 4.2% increase from the $5.97 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2025. The figures are drawn from Nairametrics’ review of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Balance of Payments Highlights for the first and second quarters of 2026.
The first-half gain was driven almost entirely by a strong second quarter. Gas export receipts reached $3.63 billion between April and June 2026, up 9.7% from $3.31 billion in Q2 2025. That performance offset a modest first-quarter decline, when earnings slipped to $2.59 billion from $2.66 billion a year earlier.
On a quarter-on-quarter basis, gas export earnings jumped about 40.2% from $2.59 billion in Q1 2026 to $3.63 billion in Q2, adding $1.04 billion to Nigeria’s export receipts. The central bank put the Q2 increase in natural gas exports at 40.15%, describing gas as one of the key contributors to the growth in goods exports.
The stronger gas receipts coincided with a broader improvement in Nigeria’s external position. The overall current account surplus rose 67.9% to $7.54 billion in Q2 2026 from $4.49 billion in Q1, supported by higher export receipts and increased diaspora remittances.
Volume data suggest the earnings improvement was not driven by prices alone. The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission reported that Nigeria exported 733,778 million standard cubic feet of natural gas in the first eight months of 2026, a 19.1% increase over the same period in 2025.
The trend extends a longer-term expansion in gas export earnings. Nigeria earned $10.51 billion from gas exports in 2025, up 21% from $8.66 billion in 2024, underscoring the growing contribution of gas to the country’s external revenue base.
Policymakers and regulators are working to deepen that contribution. The NUPRC’s Gas Development Roadmap targets more than 55 trillion cubic feet of uncommitted gas reserves and is designed to attract capital and accelerate development of new gas resources. Nigeria holds more than 200 trillion cubic feet of proven natural gas reserves, a resource base that could support higher production, exports and domestic gas utilisation.
