Nigeria's gas flaring jumps to 7.48% in August 2026, highest since Oct 2025
Nigeria’s gas flaring rate rose to 7.48% in August 2026, the highest level since October 2025, as the volume of gas flared increased to 18,350.55 million standard cubic feet (MMSCF), according to data from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC). The flare volume jumped 17.7% from July’s 15,587.54 MMSCF and was 9.7% higher than the same month in 2025.
Despite the increase, overall gas utilisation remained high at 92.5%, with 227,088.59 MMSCF used for field operations, domestic supply and exports. Total gas production in August reached 245,439.13 MMSCF, up 8.1% year-on-year.
The rise reverses a two‑month decline and pushes the year‑to‑date flaring average above 6% for the first eight months of 2026. From January to August, Nigeria flared about 131,564 MMSCF of gas.
Higher flaring wastes valuable resources, undermines revenue potential and adds to greenhouse‑gas emissions, even as the government pledges to eliminate routine flaring and unlock over 55 trillion cubic feet of uncommitted gas reserves through the NUPRC Gas Development Roadmap.
Will you support stricter enforcement of flaring penalties, push for faster gas‑to‑power projects, or advocate for greater transparency in upstream operations to curb waste?