Nigerian refinery will alter tanker trade routes in the Atlantic

In what appears to be a unique piece of research, Poten Tanker Research and Consulting Team has analysed the impact of the Dangote oil refinery, which is under construction in the Lekki Free Zone on Nigeria’s coast, and is owned by Aliko Dangote, the wealthiest person in Africa.

The state oil company Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has announced it will supply 300,000 barrels per day (b/d) of crude oil to the new 650,000 b/d refinery.

As Poten pointed out, the Dangote start up (expected in 2022) and access to 300,000 b/d will have a significant impact on crude oil exports. “In 2019, Nigeria exported about 2M b/d, with about 900,000 b/d (45%) going to Europe and a further 178,000 b/d to the US east coast. The rest was exported to Asia (545,000 b/d) while smaller volumes went to the US west coast.”