Dangote’s efforts to ramp up production of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) in Nigeria is starting to affect Europe’s PMS market.
The report by OPEC as highlighted in the Punch newspaper claimed that the Dangote refinery has cut down Nigeria’s imports of petroleum products from Europe.
“The ongoing operational ramp-up efforts at Nigeria’s new Dangote refinery and its gasoline (petrol) exports to the international market will likely weigh further on the European gasoline market,” the report states.
“Continued gasoline production in Nigeria, a country that has relied heavily on imports to meet its domestic fuel needs in the past, will most likely continue to free up gasoline volumes in international markets which will call for new destinations and flow adjustments for the extra volumes going forward.”
According to the OPEC report, notwithstanding the fact that gasoline stockpiles at the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp storage hub remained strong, the gasoline crack spread in Rotterdam against Brent scaled somewhat on robust exports.
As the Atlantic Basin’s gasoline balance extends as a result of winter-season demand-side pressures, it further stated that gasoline inventory rises are anticipated to continue throughout the upcoming month.
Earlier projections for the Dangote refinery
In October 2024, it was reported that the Dangote oil refinery was gearing up to take in around 400,000 barrels of Nigerian crude daily over the next few months, shaking up Africa’s oil trade.
The report indicated that the Dangote refinery intended to take in 13 to 14 shipments from Nigeria’s usual monthly program of about 50 cargoes.
Experts at the time revealed that the Dangote refinery might end the decades-long gasoline trade from Europe to Africa, which is valued at $17 billion per year.
In April, Bloomberg ranked the Dangote refinery above the ten largest oil refineries scattered across Europe.
The $20.5 billion Dangote refinery, owned by Africa’s richest man, is capable of processing 650,000 barrels per day.
Also, the refinery, which finally commenced production in January after years of delays, outperforms Europe’s biggest refinery, the Pernis Refinery, with an installed capacity of 404,000 barrels per day (mbpd).
Furthermore, the Dangote plant outperforms the GOI Energy ISAB Refinery in Italy, which has a refining capacity of 360,000 mbpd.
