Nigeria is still struggling to find buyers for its oil as strikes at French refineries and seasonal maintenance at plants elsewhere in Europe curb demand.
Small Nigerian crude was traded last week, with more than 20 shipments for April loading still looking for buyers, according to traders specializing in the West African market. This is similar to 10 days ago, when between 20 and 25 of the cargoes, with 1 million barrels of oil each, were on the market.
Even as crude sales grow, production in the West African nation has rebounded. Nigeria has revived production of some key streams such as Bonny Light, which were halted for months due to gross theft and technical issues.
Marketers have limited options to dispose of excess oil, consultancy FGE said on March 29. Cargo holders could look to resell their supplies at a discount or hold volumes in floating storage until the refinery strikes end, said Steve Sawyer, director of refining. at FGE, he said.
Photo Credit – iStock.com/Andrii Zorii
