Nigeria, Angola compete for Africa’s 2017 oil export trade

The two major oil producing countries in Africa – Nigeria and Angola – are running neck-to-neck on crude oil exports for June’s loading.

Though both countries still have their May cargoes to some Asian countries inconclusive, Nigeria’s crude oil loading programmes, released by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) on Monday, indicated that some requests from buyers, including China, India and Indonesia have been trickling in.

But, unlike that of May, June’s crude cargo-export figures would favour Nigeria more than Angola. .

Nigerian main cargoes will be targeting known crude buyers from America and France, with China and Indonesia taking up second volumes for June.

The record showed that loading schedule for the cargoes, covering up to half of 2017 would be issued through the international market.

It states further that exports of Qua Iboe will be about 220,000 barrels a day(bpd) adding, that:“Four cargoes of Escravos and seven of Agbami will load in June”.

But another report quoted market watchers as saying that Nigeria is struggling to make up for a reduction of about 13 cargoes it suffered in May from both Escravos and Agbami crude, in its June export arrangement.

Both Nigeria and Angola, in 2017, are said to be targeting Indonesia, which is believed to be shoring up its demands for crude with China and India.

But it was gathered that Angolan loading programme for June, issued in the first week of April 2017, will target 1.7 million bpd, higher than its May’s schedule.

The Southern African country, according to its state corporation, Sonangol, has already placed some cargoes out for delivery before the final agreement was signed with buyers from the same regional countries that Nigeria is also targeting.

Though NNPC’s spokesman, Ndu Ughamadu could not be reached, an official said there is nothing to worry about with the fact that Angola, a non OPEC member, is channeling its crude oil sales through the same route that Nigeria is targeting.

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