The Dangote Refinery, Africa’s largest, has resumed crude oil imports from the United States after a three-month pause.
This development is part of efforts to ramp up production capacity and address rising domestic and regional fuel demand.
According to a Bloomberg report on Wednesday, the refinery has acquired two million barrels of WTI Midland crude from Chevron Corp., scheduled for delivery next month to the 650,000 barrels-per-day (bpd) petrochemical plant in Lagos.
The resumption of U.S. crude imports follows earlier commitments by the refinery to source exclusively from Nigeria. Challenges, including Nigeria selling crude in dollars and other logistical issues, initially led the refinery to procure oil from external markets.
In October, the Nigerian government’s decision to allow crude sales to the refinery in naira fueled projections that the plant would no longer rely on imported crude. However, reports suggest that U.S. crude imports have resumed despite these arrangements.
The Dangote Refinery, in its early stages, sourced supertankers of U.S. oil monthly alongside Nigerian crude. This recent shipment from the U.S. highlights its continued diversification of crude sources to optimize operations and meet fuel demands.
