The Dangote Refinery, Africa’s biggest, received 10 Nigerian crude cargoes in March, double from what it received in February, as Africa’s most populous nation aims to secure enough fuel supply amid the global crude and refined product crunch as a result of the war in the Middle East.
Dangote started exporting fuel to regions other than West Africa. The refinery began operations in January 2024, launching diesel and naphtha production, and began producing gasoline in September 2024.
David Bird, chief executive officer of Dangote Refinery, told Arise TV last month that the refinery receives only five local cargoes out of the 13-15 crude cargoes previously agreed, according to reports from oilprice.com.
“We try and maintain some stability within a commercially acceptable range… but all our cost inputs—from crude to freight and insurance—are impacted,” Bird told Arise in an interview.
Read also: Nigeria’s Dangote refinery boosts exports to ease Africa’s supply crunch
At a press briefing on Monday, Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest person and owner of the refinery, said the processing plant received 10 cargoes of Nigerian crude in March, up from five in the previous months.
“Last month, they gave us six cargoes for naira and four cargoes for dollars,” Dangote told reporters, as carried by Bloomberg.
Dangote Refinery, which has the capacity to process 650,000 bpd of crude into fuels, needs 19 cargoes to operate at full capacity. The refinery has been sourcing from United States and other African crude to top up its crude supply.
However, the cost of crude for the refinery has escalated along with the surge in international crude oil prices, as Dangote relies on crude imports, too.
“The high crude cost is compounded by the fact that Nigeria upstream producers have failed to supply crude oil to the refinery as required under the PIA, forcing us to source a substantial portion through international traders who charge an additional premium,” Dangote’s management said on March 5, days after the war in the Middle East started.