Dangote Refinery Denies Reports of Seven Crude Cargo Allocation

Officials of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery have denied reports that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) allocated seven crude oil cargoes to the facility for May.

Senior refinery sources disclosed that while discussions with NNPC are ongoing, they cannot confirm any increase in the monthly crude allocation from five to seven cargoes, as widely reported.

Earlier reports had suggested that NNPC boosted crude supply to the refinery by allocating seven cargoes for May loading to support domestic fuel production.

Two trading sources had told Reuters that the development marked an increase from the five cargoes previously supplied each month.

However, speaking exclusively on Thursday, Dangote Group officials—who requested anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly—said they had not received any official communication confirming such an increase.

According to them, the refinery is expected to receive about six cargoes in May, not seven as claimed.

“Our May allocation is approximately 6.15 million barrels. The report of seven cargoes is unclear at this time,” one official said.

The sources reiterated that the 650,000-barrel-per-day refinery requires over 19 million barrels of crude monthly—equivalent to about 19 cargoes—but has consistently struggled to secure even five cargoes. Each cargo contains roughly one million barrels.

Providing a breakdown of recent supplies, an official noted:

“In October, we received 4.55 million barrels; 6.45 million in November; 4.30 million in December; 5.65 million in January; and 4.66 million in February. March was about six million barrels. Our May allocation stands at roughly 6.15 million barrels, which is still below seven million.”

The official also appealed to the Federal Government to increase crude allocations to the refinery to enhance local refining capacity.

Previously, the Dangote refinery had raised concerns over inadequate domestic crude supply. Amid ongoing disruptions in global oil markets—partly linked to tensions between Iran and the United States—the refinery has implemented several fuel price increases, pushing petrol prices above ₦1,200 per litre.

In defence of the price hikes, the company explained that insufficient local crude supply has forced it to rely heavily on imported crude.

The refinery stated that although it receives about five cargoes monthly from NNPC—paid for in naira—these are priced at international market rates plus a premium and fall short of the 13 cargoes required to meet domestic demand.

“The high cost of crude is further worsened by the failure of local producers to supply crude as stipulated under the Petroleum Industry Act. This has compelled us to source a significant portion from international traders, who charge additional premiums,” the company said.

Meanwhile, sources within NNPC indicated that efforts are underway to increase crude supply to the Dangote refinery as part of broader plans to strengthen Nigeria’s domestic refining capacity.

A senior NNPC official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the company is leveraging its global trading network to source third-party crude at competitive rates.

“As the national oil company responsible for Nigeria’s energy security, we remain committed to supporting domestic refining, including the Dangote refinery.

Within existing agreements, we continue to facilitate crude supply despite temporary availability challenges,” the official stated.

Amid rising global oil prices—exacerbated by tensions in the Middle East and disruptions to supply routes such as the Strait of Hormuz—experts have advised the Federal Government to adopt stabilisation measures.

Economist Bismarck Rewane suggested that one possible approach would be for the government to sell crude to the Dangote refinery at a fixed price, with a corresponding commitment to keep refined product prices stable.

Currently, many countries rely on the Dangote refinery for petroleum products, particularly aviation fuel and diesel, which have become increasingly expensive on the global market.