By Seun Ibiyemi
The Dangote Petroleum Refinery has purchased two cargoes of crude oil from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), marking its first-ever procurement of Middle Eastern crude as the company diversifies its feedstock sources in response to persistent domestic supply constraints.
According to a report by S&P Global Commodity Insights, the two cargoes are the first the 700,000-barrels-per-day refinery has sourced from the Middle East, representing a shift from its traditional reliance on Nigerian, other African and United States crude grades.
The report attributed the purchases to the resumption of oil exports from the Middle East following an interim peace agreement between the United States and Iran, which restored confidence in shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
Designed primarily to process Nigeria’s light sweet crude, the refinery has gradually expanded its crude slate as it ramps up operations.
S&P Global said an agreement between the Dangote Refinery and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) guarantees the supply of between 13 and 15 cargoes of Nigerian crude monthly in naira, helping to reduce the refinery’s exposure to foreign exchange risks.
However, the arrangement has been affected by inadequate crude availability and operational challenges at export terminals.
The report recalled that Dangote Refinery Chief Executive Officer, David Bird, had previously disclosed that these supply constraints forced the company to source additional crude from outside Nigeria.
The refinery’s long-term expansion plans are also expected to increase its crude demand significantly.
Dangote Refinery plans to double its processing capacity to 1.4 million barrels per day by the end of 2028, enabling it to refine about 80 per cent of Nigeria’s recent daily crude oil production.
Speaking earlier this year, Bird said the refinery intends to increase the share of heavier crude grades in its feedstock mix as part of its operational strategy.
“We definitely want to heavy up the barrel,” he said in April.
“We will be in the crude blending game. So you can easily imagine at 1.4 million b/d we could process 30 per cent Middle Eastern grades on each train,” he added.
According to S&P Global, the refinery has continued to broaden the range of crude grades it processes as it positions itself to operate as a fully merchant refinery.
The report noted that in 2025, approximately 70 per cent of the refinery’s crude imports came from Nigeria, while 24 per cent originated from the United States, highlighting its ongoing efforts to diversify supply sources.
