The Dangote Refinery has started the process of fully transitioning to Nigerian crude oil, with plans to completely halt imports by December 2025.

According to a Bloomberg report, the refinery will take delivery of 10 crude oil cargoes from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited between July and August—five in each month. Each shipment holds nearly one million barrels, totaling about 10 million barrels over the two-month period.

Currently processing 550,000 barrels per day, the refinery aims to reach full capacity of 650,000 bpd while relying solely on local crude. This shift follows an increase in domestic supply, with 53% of the refinery’s crude in June coming from Nigerian producers and the remaining 47% from the U.S.

Devakumar Edwin, Vice President at Dangote Industries, said the company expects to rely entirely on Nigerian crude once long-term export contracts held by local producers expire. “Before the end of the year, we can transition 100 per cent to local crude,” he noted.

Initially, the refinery had to depend on crude from countries like the United States, Brazil, Angola, Ghana, and Equatorial Guinea due to supply gaps in Nigeria. These gaps were driven by pipeline vandalism, oil theft, and producers’ obligations to foreign traders.

However, improved collaboration between the refinery, domestic producers, and the government is paving the way for consistent local supply.

The $20 billion refinery was built to process Nigeria’s crude domestically, reducing the country’s dependence on imported refined fuel