SEATTLE (Oil Monster): The U.S. was a net exporter of crude oil to Nigeria for the first time in February and March this year.
The refinery maintenance on the U.S. East Coast led to reduced demand for crude oil imports. At the same time, the relatively higher demand from the new Dangote oil refinery in Nigeria boosted Nigerian imports of crude oil from other countries, including the U.S.
Nigeria is more often considered as a source for U.S. crude oil imports. The country has been ranked frequently among the top five sources of U.S. crude oil imports. In 2024, Nigeria was ranked ninth among U.S. crude oil import sources.
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The gross U.S. crude oil exports to Nigeria touched 111,000 barrels per day (b/d) in February 2025 and 169,000 b/d in March. Meanwhile, the U.S. gross crude oil imports from Nigeria totalled 54,000 b/d in February and 72,000 b/d in March.
The decline in U.S. imports was primarily attributed to maintenance works at the Phillips 66 Bayway refinery in New Jersey. Following this, the Dangote refinery experienced unplanned maintenance from early April through mid-May, which led to decline in U.S. crude oil exports to Nigeria.
The Dangote refinery is scheduled to reach full crude oil distillation capacity of 650,000 b/d this year. This is likely to keep imports from overseas countries strong, provided the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) does not increase its crude oil deliveries.
