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 it expands its feedstock sources amid persistent domestic supply challenges.
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 a Middle Eastern supplier.
The development represents a shift from the refinery’s traditional reliance on crude grades from Nigeria, other African countries and the United States.
The report said the purchases followed the resumption of oil exports from the Middle East after the United States and Iran reached an interim peace agreement, restoring confidence in shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
The Dangote Refinery was designed primarily to process Nigeria’s light sweet crude. However, it has increasingly diversified its crude supply as operations continue to expand.
S&P Global Commodity Insights reported that an agreement between the refinery and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) guarantees the supply of between 13 and 15 cargoes of Nigerian crude each month, with payments made in naira.
The arrangement was introduced to reduce the refinery’s exposure to foreign exchange risks.
Despite the agreement, crude supply has remained inconsistent due to limited domestic availability and operational issues at export terminals.
According to the report, Dangote Refinery Chief Executive Officer, David Bird, had earlier disclosed that these challenges forced the company to source additional crude from outside Nigeria.
The refinery’s expansion plans are also expected to increase its demand for crude oil.
Dangote Refinery plans to double its processing capacity from 700,000 barrels per day to 1.4 million barrels per day by the end of 2028.
At that level, the facility would be capable of processing 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.
“We definitely want to heavy up the barrel,” he said in April.
He added, “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.”
According to S&P Global Commodity Insights, the refinery has continued to broaden the range of crude grades it processes as part of its ambition to operate as a fully merchant refinery.
The report noted that in 2025, about 70 per cent of the refinery’s crude imports came from Nigeria, while 24 per cent originated from the United States.
The latest purchases from the UAE highlight the refinery’s strategy to secure more diversified and reliable crude supplies as it prepares for future expansion.
