In February and March 2025, the United States sold more crude oil to Nigeria than it bought from the country. This is the first time such a thing has happened, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).
This change happened because U.S. oil demand dropped due to repairs at some refineries on the East Coast. At the same time, Nigeria’s new Dangote refinery started working and needed to buy oil, including from the U.S.
The EIA explained that because of these two events, Nigeria ended up importing more crude oil from the U.S. than it exported there. This is the first time this trade pattern has been seen between both countries. They believe it could happen again due to ongoing changes in how both countries handle oil trade.
Nigeria started buying U.S. crude oil in February, shortly after the Dangote refinery began operating in January. In the past, Nigeria was a top supplier of crude oil to the U.S., especially before America increased its own oil production.
Between 1973 and 2011, Nigeria was among the top five countries supplying oil to the U.S. But as the U.S. started producing more of its own oil, the need for Nigerian oil reduced. By 2024, Nigeria had dropped to ninth place among countries sending oil to the U.S.
In February 2025, the U.S. exported about 111,000 barrels of crude oil per day to Nigeria. By March, this number had increased to 169,000 barrels per day. At the same time, U.S. oil imports from Nigeria dropped sharply — from 133,000 barrels daily in January to just 54,000 in February, and 72,000 in March.
One of the reasons for this drop was repair work at the Bayway refinery in New Jersey, which made the U.S. need less imported crude oil.
After April, when the Bayway refinery resumed full operation and the Dangote refinery faced some unexpected shutdowns from early April to mid-May, the trade changed again. The U.S. started buying more oil from Nigeria, while Nigeria bought less U.S. oil.
The Dangote refinery plans to reach a full capacity of 650,000 barrels of oil per day this year. But currently, it is processing about 550,000 barrels daily, based on news reports.
Right now, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) sends around 300,000 barrels per day to the Dangote refinery. If NNPC does not increase this supply, the refinery will need to keep importing oil from other places, including the U.S.
One reason NNPC may prefer selling oil overseas is money. When they sell oil to Dangote, they are paid in naira, Nigeria’s local currency. But the naira has become weak compared to the U.S. dollar, so NNPC earns more money by selling oil to international buyers who pay in dollars.
NNPC may also not be able to supply more oil to the refinery even if it wanted to. This is because Nigeria’s total oil production has gone down over the years. Back in 2005, the country produced 2.4 million barrels per day, but by 2024, it had dropped to 1.3 million barrels per day.
