Nigerian fuel marketers are increasingly importing refined petroleum products originating from the Dangote Petroleum Refinery through the offshore ship-to-ship trading hub in Lome, Togo, according to an S&P Global Energy official, Matthew Tracey-Cook.

Tracey-Cook said the circular trade pattern persists even as the refinery boosts local production and supply, highlighting a possible disparity between local and international pricing.

Speaking on Thursday at a MEMAN webinar themed “West Africa pricing and flows in the context of the war,” Tracey-Cook provided insights into evolving West African refined products markets, emphasising the deepening interconnection between Dangote’s coastal operations and the Lome STS hub.

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He said Dangote volumes on a coastal basis do arrive back in Lagos from Lomé. Tracey-Cook presented data showing a marked shift in supply sources for Nigeria.
While waterborne imports exclude truck volumes, Dangote-origin products have become dominant in waterborne deliveries to Lagos and other Nigerian locations.

“Over the last six months, if you look at the volume of products on a waterborne basis that’s imported directly into Nigeria, Dangote production has become increasingly dominant,” he said.

He noted particularly strong performance between March and May 2026, saying, “For several months, from March until May, we saw well over 70 to 80 per cent of the volumes that were imported into Nigeria actually originated from Dangote; from their coastal Dangote volumes which were re-imported.”
He added that similar patterns appear on the diesel side, noting that “the increasing importance of the Dangote refinery in terms of product that’s flowing into Nigeria is really evident” from S&P Global data.

He stressed that despite Dangote’s growing direct coastal supply, offshore Lome has not diminished in importance, as the Lomé market is still slightly bigger compared to 2024 levels.

In certain months, such as November and December 2025, Lome handled significantly larger volumes. The hub serves as a flexible STS facility where larger medium-range tankers discharge cargoes that are then lifted onto smaller coaster vessels better suited to many West African ports with limited capacity.

“Lomé has become an increasingly important transshipment hub for filling regional shortages across the region… It serves an important purpose, given that many ports in West Africa don’t have the capacity to take a fully laden MR-sized vessel,” he added.

Charts from the webinar illustrate substantial Dangote exports to offshore Lome. These volumes include petrol, diesel, jet fuel and other clean products. Offshore Lome receives diverse origins but consistently incorporates significant Dangote cargoes.

Tracey-Cook also addressed pricing trends, noting an unusual seasonal pattern since the Middle East crisis began, adding, “This is really an unusual seasonal trend where gasoline in West Africa is significantly more expensive than it is in Europe right now.”

He added that Dangote petrol pricing remains tightly aligned with STS Lome benchmarks, while price differentials between the two locations enable effective risk management.

Tracey-Cook positioned Dangote and Lome as twin pillars of West African supply. “These two locations, the FOB Dangote market and also the STS Lomé market, are the two largest and most important regional hubs of supply in the region as a whole.

“You can, in a way, kind of compare it to the Mediterranean market, where you have multiple refineries, multiple sources of supply… And so that’s kind of what we see as a possibility in terms of development of this market,” he stressed.

It was disclosed that the US-Iran war’s impact has amplified Dangote’s role. “Looking at the context of the war, one of the most important things that stands out is the importance of Dangote in supplying not just West Africa, in terms of being a supplier of last resort across clean products, but also the European market.

“Europe before the war was more than 50 per cent reliant on jet fuel from inside the Persian Gulf. And when that supply was cut off, benchmark prices spiked to well over $1,800 per metric tonne.

“What we saw in the months after the war broke out was an increasing flow of product from the US, but also a large flow of product from Dangote. We actually saw in May Dangote being the largest single exporter of jet fuel globally in terms of refined product capacity,” Tracey-Cook noted.

He showed record Dangote exports outside West Africa from April to June 2026, with notable deliveries to the UK, the Netherlands and South Africa, among others.

The PUNCH recalls that some fuel importers in the country alleged in November 2025 that the Dangote refinery sells a litre of petrol to international traders at N65 cheaper than the amount it offers to marketers in Nigeria.

The Depot and Petroleum Product Marketers Association of Nigeria and the Petroleum Products Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria confirmed this in separate interviews with our correspondent at the time.

“Dangote is selling to international traders at N65 lower than what he offers in Nigeria. How is it possible for some of our members to buy from someone who bought from Dangote?

“Dangote sells to international traders at N65 cheaper than what he is selling to us. In some instances, we were able to buy from those people and still bring it to Nigeria. They will take the product to Lomé, claiming that they are buying large quantities,” DAPPMAN said in 2025.

But the refinery dispelled the allegation of cheaper petrol sales in Togo compared to Nigeria, with many Nigerians questioning how local marketers could leave the producer of a product in his home country to buy it from another trader in Togo.

Courtesy – The Punch

The Senate Committee on Petroleum Sector has vowed to end the existing jurisdictional regulatory conflict between the Nigerian Midstream & Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and Oil and Gas Free Zone Authority (OGFZA).

Chairman of the Senate Committee on Downstream Petroleum Sector, Senator Sulaiman Abdulrahman Kawu Sumaila stated this at the Committee’s 5-day retreat in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.

Senator Sumaila assured that the committee will, at the end of the retreat, come up with practical and implementable recommendations that will promote harmony, investors’ confidence, energy security and sustainable economic development.

He explained that the retreat was designed to provide a neutral platform for constructive engagements among all relevant stakeholders.

He added, “The objectives of the retreat are to facilitate meaningful dialogue among all stakeholders on issues arising from the overlapping statutory mandates; develop practical coordination framework capable of promoting seamless regulations, while respecting the lawful mandates of the institutions involved.

“The committee will also examine whether legislative clarification or amendment is required, study and identify ambiguities as well as to ensure that the outcomes of the retreat are in line with national security, consumer protection, market stability and economic growth.

“I want to assure the stakeholders that the committee will examine every presentation, submissions and legal argument placed before it during the retreat.

“At the conclusion of its deliberations, the committee will formulate unbiased, evident-based and objective recommendations aimed for providing both immediate and long-term solutions to the jurisdictional regulatory issues that have arisen.

“Where permanent legislation, policy or constitutional reforms are required to prevent conflicts among the agencies, the committee will not hesitate to recommend such measures in the override interest of the nation.

“Our ultimate goal is to establish a regulatory environment characterized by regularities, cooperation, accountability, efficiency and legal certainty; one that supports engagement, promotes healthy institutional collaboration, safeguard national interest and strengthens Nigeria’s position as leading energy hub in Africa.

In his good will message, the Managing Director of the Oil and Gas Free Zone Authority, Alhaji Bamanga Usman Jada, appealed to all regulatory stakeholders in the petroleum sector to desist from promoting unhealthy jurisdictional ambiguity among the federal government agencies.

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Alhaji Jada explained that all regulatory agencies in the sub-sector were expected to create a business-enabling environment that promotes regulatory cooperation among agencies, saying “this should be done relying on the global principles of the rules of law, with concerted efforts to continue building and sustaining investors’ confidence.

“If Nigeria is to become Africa’s foremost energy and industrial hub, Free zone investors like Dangote Industries Free Zone must be allowed to enjoy the one-stop-shop principle which is being practiced in all successful Free Zones across the globe.

“They all operate one coordinated regulatory system, and all institutions of government in Nigeria must continue to be encouraged to understand the greater national objectives of the Free zone scheme.”

The peace deal between the United States and Iran over the Strait of Hormuz might cost Nigeria dearly in oil revenues.

Nigeria’s oil earnings recorded an estimated windfall of about N5.13 trillion in two months (February to April), as crude prices surged sharply following tensions between the United States–Iran crisis, pushing revenues far above the Federal Government’s 2026 budget estimates.

Recall that the US-Iran war started on February 28 when oil prices were below $70 a barrel.
The hostilities brought the Strait of Hormuz, a major global energy gateway, under blockade for four months.

However, three days ago, a truce was reached among all parties, leading to a ceasefire and the reopening of the channel.

While the war lasted, oil prices rose to an all time peak of over $120 per barrel, further boosting revenue for Nigeria.

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The 2026 budget is anchored on daily oil production of 1.8 million barrels per day, a benchmark oil price of $64.85 per barrel and an exchange rate of N1,400 to the dollar.

Based on these, expected daily oil revenue stands at $116.73m, derived from multiplying 1.8 million barrels by $64.85. When converted at the budget exchange rate, this amounts to about N163.42bn per day, which serves as the baseline for measuring any revenue gains or shortfalls.
Actual earnings in March and April exceeded this benchmark, largely due to a sharp rise in crude oil prices occasioned by the crisis in the Middle East.

Recent data from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) indicated that Nigeria’s oil production averaged 1.55 million barrels per day, while the average crude price stood at $95.03 per barrel, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria, and the exchange rate averaged N1,370 to the dollar.

Going by these figures, daily revenue amounted to approximately $147.30m, obtained by multiplying 1.55 million barrels by $95.03. Converted at the average exchange rate for the month, this translates to about N201.80bn per day.

Despite production falling short of the budget target by about 250,000 barrels per day, the higher oil price ensured that overall revenue remained significantly above projections.

But should the reopening of Strait of Hormuz drive crude prices towards Nigeria’s 2026 budget benchmark of $64.85 per barrel as against elevated crisis level of $95 per barrel, the country could lose about N13 trillion in the remaining months of 2026.

The reopening of the Strait of Hormuz will return millions of barrels of Middle East crude to the market. Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait and the UAE collectively produce more than 15 million barrels per day, compared with Nigeria’s average output of about 1.55 million barrels per day.

The renewed availability of these supplies could narrow the premium enjoyed by Nigerian crude grades during the disruption and intensify competition in key Asian markets.