NNPC begins export from Port Harcourt refinery

Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has begun it’s first cargo of Port-Harcourt low sulfur straight run fuel oil (LSSR) to Dubai-based Gulf Transport & Trading Limited (GTT).

The company is expected to load the cargo in the coming days onboard the Wonder Star MR1 ship, signalling the commencement of operations at the plant and the exportation of petroleum products.

The ship will load 15,000 metric tons of the product, which translates to about 13.6 million litres.

Although the volume coming from the NNPC into the global market is still small, the development has the potential to impact the Very Low Sulphur Fuel Oil (VLSFO) benchmarks in the future while changing the market realities for Atlantic Basin exporters into Nigeria and other regions.

The sulfur content of the export by NNPC stands at 0.26 per cent per wt and a 0.918 g/ml density at 15°C, according to Kpler, a data and analysis company.

The cargo was reportedly sold at an $8.50/t discount to the NWE 0.5 per cent benchmark on a Free on Board (FOB) basis.

Kpler reported that the development would help displace imports from traditional suppliers in Africa and Europe, as Nigeria’s falling clean product (CPP) imports are already decreasing, dragging imports into the wider West Africa region lower as well.