US became net exporter of crude to Nigeria for the first time in February

The United States became a net exporter of crude oil to Nigeria for the first time in February and March 2025, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).

The shift in trade dynamics was attributed to reduced demand on the U.S. East Coast due to refinery maintenance and increased demand from Nigeria’s newly operational Dangote Petroleum Refinery.

“The United States exported more crude oil to Nigeria than it received from Nigeria for the first time in February and March 2025,” EIA said in a statement released on Tuesday.

“During this period, refinery maintenance on the U.S. East Coast drove down U.S. demand for crude oil imports, including imports from Nigeria, and the relatively new Dangote refinery in Nigeria drove up Nigeria’s demand for inputs, including crude oil it imported from the United States.

“This marks the first time that the United States was a net crude oil exporter to Nigeria, and structural changes to crude oil trade between the countries suggest this dynamic could occur more frequently.”

The EIA said Nigeria imported U.S. crude in February shortly after the Dangote refinery began operations in January. Historically, Nigeria has been a major supplier of crude oil to the U.S., particularly before the American shale boom.

“In nearly every year between 1973, when our country-level crude oil import data series began, and 2011, when an increase in domestic crude oil production reduced the need for light, sweet crude oil from Nigeria and other countries, Nigeria ranked among the top five sources of U.S. crude oil imports,” EIA said.

“More recently, Nigeria ranked ninth among U.S. crude oil import sources in 2024. U.S. gross exports of crude oil to Nigeria reached 111,000 barrels per day (b/d) in February 2025 and 169,000 b/d in March.

“Over the same period, U.S. gross crude oil imports from Nigeria fell, from 133,000 b/d in January to 54,000 b/d in February and 72,000 b/d in March.”

The drop in imports was largely due to maintenance activities at the Phillips 66 Bayway refinery in New Jersey, which temporarily lowered U.S. demand for imported crude.

“As the Bayway refinery returned to normal operations in April and the Dangote refinery experienced unplanned maintenance from early April through mid-May, U.S. crude oil imports from Nigeria increased and U.S. crude oil exports to Nigeria declined,” the agency stated.

“The Dangote refinery is scheduled to reach full crude oil distillation capacity of 650,000 b/d this year; trade press reports indicate it is currently running at about 550,000 b/d.”

The EIA also noted that unless the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) increases its supply to the Dangote refinery beyond the 300,000 b/d it currently delivers, the refinery will likely continue to import crude.

“Revenue generated from crude oil sales to the Dangote refinery are denominated in naira, Nigeria’s domestic currency. Because the naira has weakened relative to the U.S. dollar, the NNPC has an economic incentive to sell its crude oil on international markets,” EIA said.

The agency added that NNPC’s ability to increase supply may be limited due to declining production, with crude output falling from a peak of 2.4 million b/d in 2005 to 1.3 million b/d in 2024.