Dangote refinery to stop crude oil imports by December
Dangote refinery to stop crude oil imports by December
The Dangote oil refinery is set to halt crude oil imports by December 2025, according to a report by Bloomberg.
The refinery plans to fully transition to using Nigerian crude by the end of the year, replacing the hundreds of thousands of barrels per day currently imported.
According to the report, about half of the crude processed at the facility in June was sourced from local producers, who are expected to increase their supply as existing commitments to foreign buyers come to an end.
Devakumar Edwin, Vice President at Dangote Industries and overseer of the 650,000-barrel-per-day refinery in Lagos, stated that contracts with international crude suppliers are nearing expiration, after which the refinery will rely entirely on domestic feedstock.
We expect some of the long-term contracts will expire. Personally, and as a company, we expect that before the end of the year, we can transition 100 per cent to local crude,” Edwin was quoted.
The press recalls that the founder of the refinery, Aliko Dangote, said recently that the facility relied heavily on the United States for crude supply despite the naira-for-crude deal.
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission stated in its 2024 report that oil producers protested against the directive to supply crude to Dangote and other local refineries in accordance with the Domestic Crude Supply Obligations.
It was learnt that supply contracts with foreign companies, crude theft and attacks on pipelines in the Niger Delta have impacted production reducing the availability of oil for the local market..
Devakumar Edwin revealed that the Dangote refinery has previously imported crude from countries including Brazil, Angola, Ghana, and Equatorial Guinea. However, he noted that improved collaboration with local oil traders and the government is expected to ensure a steady supply of Nigerian crude going forward.
The refinery anticipates a significant increase in local crude deliveries in the coming months.
According to data compiled by Bloomberg, 53% of the refinery’s crude supply in June came from domestic producers, while 47% was sourced from the United States. Edwin also confirmed that the facility is currently processing 550,000 barrels of crude oil per day.
For July and August, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) is scheduled to deliver five cargoes to the refinery each month, with each shipment containing nearly one million barrels of crude, according to a list of cargo allocations reviewed by Bloomberg.
Aliko Dangote built the $20 billion refinery to end the cycle of exporting Nigerian crude to Europe for refining and then re-importing it as expensive finished products.
The refinery’s gradual ramp-up has already positioned Nigeria as a net exporter of petroleum products, despite initial challenges in securing sufficient domestic crude. These shortfalls had earlier forced the refinery to rely heavily on imported crude to meet its processing needs as it works toward reaching its full capacity of 650,000 barrels per day.
