Nigeria’s Dangote Refinery, owned by Africa’s wealthiest individual, Aliko Dangote, has reportedly begun exporting refined petroleum products to neighboring West African nations. According to a report published by Bloomberg on Tuesday, the refinery is now shipping gasoline to countries in the region, marking a significant development for the refinery and the local oil sector.
The refinery, which has been receiving crude oil from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), is said to be conducting its export transactions in US dollars, despite the fact that the crude oil it receives is paid for in Nigerian Naira. This shift aligns with a directive issued by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who ordered that crude oil sales to the Dangote Refinery be conducted in Naira—a policy that has already been implemented by NNPCL.
Bloomberg’s report cited data from multiple sources including Vortexa, Kpler, Precise Intelligence, and a ship-tracking platform. The report highlighted that a tanker named “The CL Jane Austen” recently loaded more than 300,000 barrels of gasoline from Dangote’s refinery and is now positioned off the coast of Togo, a region known for ship-to-ship transfers.
This development comes shortly after comments made by the chairman of the Ghana National Petroleum Authority (NPA) at the OTL Africa Downstream Oil Conference in Lagos. He suggested that importing refined fuel from Nigeria, rather than Europe, could help reduce costs for goods and services in Ghana by eliminating freight charges. He added that with Dangote Refinery potentially reaching a capacity of 650,000 barrels per day, the surplus fuel could be exported to neighboring African countries, reducing reliance on European imports and, in turn, lowering prices.
Bloomberg’s investigation also revealed that discussions are already underway with several countries, including Ghana, Angola, Namibia, and South Africa, about future fuel imports from Dangote Refinery. Initial talks have also been initiated with countries like Niger, Chad, Burkina Faso, and the Central African Republic. However, Dangote has yet to officially confirm the start of petrol exports to these West African nations.
In addition to international exports, Dangote Refinery has recently reached an agreement with the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) to supply 60 million liters of fuel weekly. This deal has already resulted in a slight decrease in local fuel prices, according to reports from JOINTEARN. Economists speculate that Nigeria’s inflationary pressures could ease further in the coming months if gasoline prices continue to stabilize due to the increased supply from Dangote Refinery.
