Oil Marketers Adjust Strategies Amid Debt and Earnings Shift

In the first half of 2026, Nigeria's three oil marketing companies—Conoil Plc, Eterna Plc, and TotalEnergies Marketing Nigeria Plc—implemented contrasting funding strategies in response to a high-interest-rate environment. Conoil increased its debt by 31% to support operations, with borrowings rising to N72.05bn and finance costs increasing by 74.1% to N8.29bn.

Despite this, Conoil's revenue grew by 25.2% to N179.90bn, and profit after tax surged 473% to N5.15bn. In contrast, Eterna undertook a balance-sheet restructuring, raising N18.97bn through an equity issue, which allowed it to reduce total borrowings by 57.5% to N29.45bn.

TotalEnergies reduced its borrowings, cutting finance costs by 37.5% to N8.73bn. Overall, finance costs for the three marketers totaled N18.51bn, down 5.2% from the previous year, despite a 52 million litre decline in petrol consumption due to higher pump prices.