Nigeria imports N4.37trn worth of crude oil in 9 months

Nigeria imported crude oil worth N4.37trn from January to September 2025, analysis of the foreign trade statistics by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has shown. The report stated that the country imported the product labeled, Petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals, crude, N726.83bn in the first quarter of 2025 while this increased […]

Nigeria imported crude oil worth N4.37trn from January to September 2025, analysis of the foreign trade statistics by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has shown.

The report stated that the country imported the product labeled, Petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals, crude, N726.83bn in the first quarter of 2025 while this increased substantially to N1.34trn in the second quarter and N2.3trn in the third quarter.

The crude oil was majorly imported from the United States of America.

Daily Trust reports that the importation is majorly driven by the Dangote Refinery due to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) not able to meet the company’s required crude oil to service the 650,000 barrels of crude oil per day (bpd) refinery.

It would be recalled that Aliko Dangote, President of Dangote Group, had in July said the plant currently imports about 10 million barrels of crude oil from the United States and other countries every month.

Speaking during his keynote speech at the West African Refined Products Pricing and Markets Development Conference in Abuja, Dangote said international oil companies (IOCs) have been the most difficult part of the refinery’s journey.

He said when the construction of the refinery was completed, one of the first commercial shocks encountered was “crude feedstock sourcing.”

“At the project inception, it was reasonable to assume that in a country producing about 2 million barrels per day, securing crude would be the least of our worries. But we were wrong,” he had said.

The billionaire said instead of buying crude directly from Nigerian producers at competitive terms, the refinery had to engage with international trading companies “who are buying Nigerian crude and reselling it to us with hefty premiums”.

“Of course, as we speak today, we buy about 9 to 10 million barrels of crude monthly from the United States and other countries,” he said.

Dangote said the NNPCL had made some Nigerian crude cargoes “available to us from the start to date”.

“They have done very well. But it’s been very, very difficult with the IOCs. IOCs have been the most difficult part of our journey.”

He said another challenge was encountered during crude transportation.

“Lifting schedules were constantly shifted by upstream operators, and we were hit with excessive port and regulatory charges. Skyrocketing port charges made up about 40 percent of the total freight cost, meaning it cost two-thirds as much as chartering a vessel with the crew, insurance, and fuel included.”

He said refiners in India, despite sourcing crude from farther distances, enjoy “lower freight charges than we do right here in West Africa because they are not saddled with exorbitant port charges”.

 

“In terms of port charges, it is currently more expensive to load a domestic cargo of petroleum products from Dangote refinery as customers pay both at the loading point and also at the discharge point,” Dangote said.

 

“But when they load from Lome, which competes with us, they pay only at the port of discharge. This is simply unfair and unsustainable”.

 

Nigeria exports N37.72trn crude

 

Conversely, Nigeria exported N37.72trn worth of the product during the period.

 

A breakdown showed N12.95trn was export in the first quarter but it reduced to N11.96trn in the second quarter and N12.8tr in the third quarter.