Nigeria flared more than 203.9 billion standard cubic feet of natural gas in 2025, even as overall gas utilisation stayed above 92 per cent, highlighting a deep structural contradiction in the country’s energy system, according to data from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).
Figures from the regulator’s full-year 2025 Gas Production Status Report show that total gas production reached about 2.71 trillion scf, with roughly 2.50 trillion scf utilised across field operations, domestic supply, and exports.
Yet flaring remained stubbornly high.
Gas flaring rises despite regulatory pressure
Nigeria flared 203.97 billion scf of gas in 2025, representing 7.54 per cent of total production. This marked an increase from 192.9 billion scf recorded in 2024, despite ongoing gas commercialisation initiatives and tighter regulations.
Monthly flaring volumes mostly ranged between 15 billion scf and 18 billion scf, peaking in January and July. The worst performance came in September, when gas utilisation fell to 90.9 per cent, pushing the flaring rate to 9.05 per cent, the highest for the year.
Associated Gas drives most flaring
The data shows that flaring remains largely driven by Associated Gas infrastructure constraints. Associated Gas, produced alongside crude oil, averaged over 120 billion scf per month in 2025 but faced utilisation challenges due to limited offtake capacity, plant downtime, and transportation bottlenecks.
In contrast, Non-Associated Gas contributed far less to flaring, benefiting from better alignment with market demand and infrastructure planning.
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