India’s state-owned refiners are ramping up purchases of Nigerian crude even as Nigeria’s flagship Dangote Petroleum Refinery increasingly sources its feedstock from the United States – a twist that industry insiders are calling an “oil trade irony.”
Industry sources told Reuters that Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) recently acquired one million barrels of Nigeria’s Agbami crude for September delivery in a tender awarded to global trader Trafigura. The deal is part of a wider buying spree by Indian refiners aimed at securing millions of barrels from non-Russian suppliers.
In a parallel trend, the $20 billion Dangote Petroleum Refinery in Lagos — Africa’s largest — is importing the bulk of its crude from the U.S. rather than from Nigeria.
The refinery brought in an average of 10 million barrels in July, with management confirming that American supplies now dominate its intake, despite an existing naira-for-crude arrangement with the Federal Government.
According to Reuters, both IOC and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) have each purchased one million barrels of non-Russian crude for delivery in September and October, following U.S. pressure on India to scale back imports from Russia.
For much of the period since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Indian state refiners had been absent from the spot market, opting instead for discounted Russian cargoes. That trend shifted in late July when, after lobbying from U.S. officials — including President Donald Trump — Indian firms paused their Russian purchases.
In total, over two million barrels of Nigerian crude are scheduled for shipment to India for September and October.
BPCL reportedly secured its share through direct negotiations for September arrival, according to a source familiar with the deals. Would you like me to also expand this into a 1,000+ word feature that digs into the geopolitical and economic angles of this “oil trade irony”?
COURTESY: vavalue.com
