The Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the Federal Government have spent N11.85bn on fuel for motor vehicles and generators between January and April 2026, as elevated domestic petrol prices and renewed Iran-US tensions continue to raise concerns over energy costs and global oil market stability.
An analysis of data obtained from the Open Treasury Portal by The PUNCH showed that the amount represented a 113.4 per cent increase from the N5.55bn spent on the same items in the corresponding period of 2025.
The Open Treasury Portal is the Federal Government’s public financial transparency platform, which publishes budget implementation, payment and fiscal data of ministries, departments and agencies to improve accountability in public spending.
While the Open Treasury Portal does not disclose a detailed breakdown by ministry, department or agency under the expenditure category, the figures represent fuel and related operating costs incurred by Federal Government entities financed from the federal budget.
The data showed that motor vehicle fuel cost rose by 108.2 per cent from N3.17bn in the first four months of 2025 to N6.60bn in the same period of 2026.
In April 2026 alone, the government spent N2.94bn on motor vehicle fuel, compared with N1.73bn in April 2025. The approved budget for motor vehicle fuel also increased from N122.63bn in 2025 to N207.37bn in 2026, indicating an increase of N84.74bn or 69.1 per cent.
Despite the rise, only 3.18 per cent of the 2026 motor vehicle fuel budget had been spent as of April, leaving a balance of N200.77bn. Spending on plant and generator fuel also rose sharply from N2.38bn in the first four months of 2025 to N5.24bn in the same period of 2026, representing an increase of N2.86bn or 120.3 per cent.
The April actual spending on generator fuel stood at N2.99bn in 2026, compared with N1.37bn in April 2025. The budget for plant and generator fuel increased from N104.40bn in 2025 to N185.80bn in 2026, while execution stood at 2.82 per cent as of April.
Combined, the 2026 budget for vehicle and generator fuel stood at N393.18bn, compared with N227.02bn in 2025. This means the allocation rose by N166.15bn or 73.2 per cent year-on-year.
Although Nigeria is a crude oil producer, higher global crude prices often feed into domestic petrol costs because the downstream market is largely deregulated and petrol prices now respond more directly to landing costs, refining margins and exchange rate pressures.
The implication is that ministries, departments and agencies may face higher operating costs if petrol prices remain elevated, especially for transportation, power generation and field operations.
Beyond vehicle and generator fuel, other fuel-related spending also rose significantly in 2026. The government spent N2.25bn on other transport equipment fuel in the first four months of 2026, compared with just N92.07m in the same period of 2025. Aircraft fuel cost also rose from N702.30m to N8.01bn, while sea boat fuel increased from N1.50bn to N8.76bn.
Cooking gas and fuel costs rose from N47.88m in the first four months of 2025 to N104.65m in the corresponding period of 2026. Altogether, spending on other transport equipment fuel, aircraft fuel, sea boat fuel, and cooking gas rose from N2.35bn in 2025 to N19.13bn in 2026, an increase of N16.78bn or 715.5 per cent.
Sea boat fuel recorded the highest budget execution rate among the listed fuel items at 8.02 per cent, followed by aircraft fuel at 4.55 per cent and other transport equipment fuel at 4.40 per cent.
The data further showed that the Federal Government spent N4.39bn on the maintenance of motor vehicles, transport equipment, plants and generators in the first four months of 2026. This was 164.1 per cent higher than the N1.66bn spent on the same items in the corresponding period of 2025.
Maintenance of motor vehicles and transport equipment gulped N3.04bn between January and April 2026, compared with N1.20bn in the same period of 2025. Maintenance of plants and generators also rose from N459.16m in 2025 to N1.35bn in 2026. The total 2026 budget for both maintenance items stood at N182.33bn, with N177.94bn still unspent as of April.
The sharp rise in fuel and maintenance costs underlines the pressure of high energy prices on government operations, even as public finance remains strained by debt service, security spending and rising personnel obligations.
It also raises fresh questions about the cost of running government agencies in an economy where electricity supply remains unreliable, and many public institutions still depend heavily on petrol and diesel-powered generators.
When the geopolitical tensions in the Middle East started, the Federal Government ruled out intervening to control petrol prices. The immediate past Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, said the government would not tamper with market-based pricing of petroleum products, stressing that intervention would only be considered as a last resort.
He explained that the current administration’s economic philosophy prioritises market-based pricing mechanisms for petroleum products and foreign exchange, describing them as key reforms introduced by President Bola Tinubu to remove long-standing distortions in the economy.
Edun noted that while the Middle East crisis could affect global oil markets, the government would respond through targeted policy measures rather than price controls.
Official data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed that Nigeria’s average petrol price surged by 45.8 per cent between February and April 2026, rising from N1,051.47 to N1,532.93 per litre as escalating US-Iran tensions pushed crude prices higher and filtered through to the deregulated domestic fuel market.
Industry experts, financiers, and policymakers recently called for accelerated adoption of electric vehicles in Nigeria as rising fuel prices continue to squeeze household incomes and business margins.
They noted that persistent increases in petrol prices are forcing a shift in how Nigerians approach transportation, with electric vehicles emerging as a more cost-effective alternative.
A Business Development and Strategy Manager for the Presidential Initiative on Compressed Natural Gas and Electric Vehicles, Omolara Obileye, said the financial advantage of EVs has become increasingly clear.
“Today, charging an electric vehicle for a 200-kilometre journey would cost approximately N4,500. The same journey on petrol would cost about N22,500. That represents a five-to-one cost advantage in favour of electric vehicles,” she said.
She explained that the government’s approach is focused on a gradual transition to a more sustainable energy mix. “What we are navigating is not a choice between CNG and EVs. It is a deliberate, phased energy transition. The goal is a balanced energy mix: one that serves Nigerians today while building the infrastructure required for tomorrow,” she said.
Despite growing interest, she acknowledged that infrastructure gaps, power supply challenges, and affordability concerns remain key barriers. “What we need now is visible momentum, driven by all the stakeholders represented here today,” she added.
Chief Executive Officer of Blue Camel Energy Ltd, Yusuf Suleiman, said the transition presents an opportunity to strengthen Nigeria’s economic resilience. “It is a pathway to improved energy access, a driver of industrialisation, and a foundation for economic resilience, reducing our dependence on imported fossil fuels,” he said.
He noted that the company is investing in solar-powered charging infrastructure to reduce reliance on the national grid. “In reality, charging infrastructure must be able to operate independently of the national grid. What this proves is that a 100 per cent solar-powered charging system can work as a business model,” he said.
For operators, the shift is already being driven by cost savings. Chief Operating Officer of Bankrol Camel EV, Ahmed Garba-Ahmed, said electric vehicles offer a significant reduction in operating expenses.
“Electric vehicles can reduce energy costs per kilometre by up to 60 per cent… For commercial users, ride-hailing drivers, fleet operators, and logistics companies, this is not just about sustainability. It is about margins. It is about profitability. It is about survival,” he said.
He added that the transition is already underway across segments of the transport sector. “The transition to electric mobility in Nigeria is no longer a future projection; it is already happening. The question is not if, but how fast, and who leads,” he said.
The PUNCH recently reported that renewable energy stakeholders intensified calls for the widespread adoption of solar generators in Nigeria, describing the technology as a practical and cost-effective alternative to the millions of petrol and diesel generators powering homes and businesses across the country.
The push formed the basis of discussions ahead of the inaugural Nigeria Solar Generator Day, where policymakers, investors, renewable energy firms and development partners are expected to explore ways of accelerating the deployment of solar-powered systems nationwide.
However, as the easing of tensions between the United States and Iran continues, the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria called on refiners, depot owners and petroleum products importers to reduce their ex-depot and retail pump prices in line with the recent decline in international crude oil prices.
The National President of PETROAN, Billy Gillis-Harry, said the drop in global crude oil prices provided an opportunity for operators in the downstream petroleum sector to pass on the benefits of lower crude costs to consumers.
“The recent decline in global crude oil prices presents an opportunity for stakeholders in the downstream petroleum sector to pass the benefits of lower crude oil costs to Nigerian consumers. Market realities should be reflected in both ex-depot and retail pump prices in the interest of fairness and economic relief for the public,” Gillis-Harry said.
According to the association, recent developments in the global oil market indicate that crude oil prices are on a downward trend, with Brent crude falling to about $77–$78 per barrel following the ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran and expectations that oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz will gradually normalise.
Gillis-Harry expressed concern over pricing trends in the domestic market, saying, “In some instances, the landing cost of imported petroleum products appears to be lower than the prices offered by domestic refiners. This development is surprising and underscores the need for a more competitive downstream petroleum market that guarantees consumers access to the most affordable products available.”
The PETROAN president called on the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority to continue issuing import licences to qualified marketers, saying increased competition would help moderate prices and ensure adequate supply.