Nigeria’s importation of petroleum products from European countries have dwindled not only as a result of the commencement or operation of Dangote Refinery, but also because marketers have tapped into sourcing products from the Lome offshore hub due to pricing.

Industry experts who spoke at a webinar organised by the Major Energy Marketers Association of Nigeria (MEMAN) through the Competency Centre in partnership with S&P Global Commodity Insights (Platts), revealed this, disclosing also that subsidy removal has reduced smuggling, just as consistent refining capacity and diversified supply have reduced price volatility.

They, however, insisted that attracting investment requires clear, implementable regulatory frameworks, a level playing field, security and investor confidence. The panel emphasised that multiple supply sources and market alternatives remain essential to resilience.

Head, Economic Intelligence Research and Regulation, MEMAN, Mrs. Ogechi Nkwoji, presented the ex-Lomé hub as a pragmatic offshore trading solution that evolved from onshore bottlenecks and declining domestic refinery performance.

She said: “Large cargoes are discharged into floating storage off Togo and sold in smaller five to 20 kiloton parcels to regional buyers, chiefly Nigerian marketers. Market participants were grouped as international trading houses, intermediate chartering traders and local marketers.

“The hub’s advantages — deep water, security, flexible lot sizes and same day trading capability — make Lomé an important reference point for price discovery and coastal distribution, and a flexible buffer during onshore disruptions,” she stated.

Giving an insight into gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel markets in Europe, Associate Editorial Director for EMEA clean refined products at S&P Global Commodity Insights, Gary Clark, stressed supply resilience in the face of geopolitical disruption, including effects from Russia, Ukraine and tensions in the Middle East.

Clark said Platts has floated new assessments for West Africa, including a low sulphur diesel FOB West Africa assessment on Lekki and Lagos basis and an STS low sulphur diesel assessment on a Togo and Lomé basis.

“These assessments are designed to reflect regional trading dynamics as domestic refining capacity expands,” he stated.

Clark noted that Dangote’s ramp up has reshaped flows, retaining much gasoil in West Africa and exporting some jet fuel internationally, which reduces but does not eliminate import dependence.

He also noted that outages and maintenance can quickly reintroduce import needs and market volatility.

Senior Price Reporter, EMEA Gasoline & West Africa Refined Products, S&P Global Commodity Insights, Mr. Matthew Tracey-Cook observed that crack spreads have been softer relative to the post COVID and Russia Ukraine period, driven in part by reduced transatlantic arbitrage and lower exports to West Africa following Dangote’s commissioning.

Tracey-Cook highlighted a sharp rally in gasoline cracks in August after an FCC outage at Dangote.

With implied cracks moving from about thirteen dollars per barrel to above seventeen dollars per barrel.

He said this episode underscored how Dangote outages can have outsized impacts on Atlantic basin product balances and prompt market backwardation.

He said: “Europe remains a major supplier into many West African markets but direct imports into Nigeria from Europe have declined while cargoes increasingly land in regional hubs such as Lomé and are broken into smaller parcels.

“Transatlantic flows to the United States were weaker in 2025 compared with 2024, contributing to softer European crack spreads, while alternative supply routes from the Middle East, the United States and India and re-routing around the Suez have altered the supply geometry.

“Lomé continues to grow as a flexible marginal sourcing point even as Dangote supplies large truck volumes domestically, so import dependence has shifted rather than disappeared,” he stated.

MEMAN Chairman, Mr. Huub Stokman framed the event as timely following Nigeria’s move to full fuel price deregulation, emphasizing that rising local refining capacity changes the supply landscape and that MEMAN will support market transparency, benchmarking and coordinated stakeholder engagement during the transition (The Guardian)