As Africa’s biggest oil producer increases its oil output, Nigeria’s NNPC and Aiteo have formed a joint venture to introduce a new grade of crude called Nembe.
For many years, there have been output declines due to crude theft, attacks on pipelines in the Niger Delta, and a lack of investment. As a result, the Nigerian government has been facing significant fiscal deficits and declining revenue. However, production has increased recently.
The first crude marketing project of its kind to be entirely managed by Nigerian entities, the Nembe crude stream will be managed and marketed by a joint venture between state-owned NNPC and oil firm Aiteo Eastern E&P Co. Ltd., the companies announced on Tuesday.
Maryamu Idris, executive director of crude and condensate at NNPC Trading, stated at the Argus European Crude conference in London on Wednesday that “it is definitely the trajectory that we are going to follow.”
sabotage the result
An NNPC source told Reuters on the fringes of the conference in London that nembe production was added to the Bonny Light stream more than three years ago, but output was hampered by sabotage incidents on the Nembe Creek Trunk Line (NCTL).
He continued, “The nation has now succeeded in resurrecting Nembe as a distinct grade.” According to a statement from NNPC, the expansion enables Nigeria to export an additional two cargoes of 950,000 barrels of crude each month.
Two shipments totaling 950,000 barrels were sold to France and the Netherlands in October, marking the sale of Nembe’s first cargoes.
According to a person familiar with the situation, the first shipment of Nembe cargo was sold to Gulf Transport & Trading, based in the United Arab Emirates, which then loaded it onto the Suezmax tanker Maran Orpheus and headed for an unidentified destination in Fos, France.
Nembe comparable to preceding grades
According to Idris of NNPC, Nembe is comparable to other distillate-rich grades in Nigeria like Forcados, Bonga, and Egina.
She said that the low-sulfur grade is a strong contender to compete with Brazilian and Azeri crude grades for European refiners, commanding a premium over the global Brent benchmark.
According to the source, NNPC plans to increase nembe production from the current level of about 50,000 barrels per day to 80,000 barrels per day by the first quarter of 2025.
According to OPEC figures, Nigeria produced 1.39 million barrels per day (bpd) in September, but an October survey indicated that the country produces roughly 1.5 million bpd. However, the nation intends to increase output to
NNPC will provide Dangote with
According to sources last week, NNPC was scheduled to deliver up to six cargoes of crude oil to the much awaited Dangote oil refinery in December for use in test runs.
Nigeria imports nearly all of the refined fuel it needs due to low capacity and poor upkeep. The nation is now depending on the 650,000 bpd refinery that Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, is building to fulfill its goal of eliminating fuel imports.
According to the first NNPC source, the refinery will run on crudes with an API gravity of 29 to 34 degrees.
The density of a crude oil is measured by its API gravity, which is usually between 15 and 45 degrees. Greater API denotes a lighter, less
