Nigeria’s export profile to African markets is beginning a notable shift from crude-only trade dominance, as new figures from the National Bureau of Statistics showed a sharp rise in the export of refined petroleum products, signalling the country’s transition into a continental fuel supplier.
According to an analysis of the latest third-quarter Foreign Trade Statistics Report of the bureau, sales of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) emerged as Nigeria’s second-largest export commodity to other African countries.
Petrol export was valued at N707.05bn and accounted for 14.42 per cent of total shipments to the continent. Only crude oil, which generated N1.94tn or 39.57 per cent, earned more during the period.
The surge in refined product exports comes months after the Dangote Petroleum Refinery commenced operations. Further analysis by our correspondent revealed that there were no recorded sales in the first and second quarters of the year, with commercial activity only taking off between July and September 2025.
Beyond petrol, the report shows that gas oil (diesel), worth N692.08bn (14.12 per cent), and kerosene-type jet fuel, valued at N383.02bn (7.81 per cent), also featured prominently among the top exports to African markets.
Together, the top five export commodities, including crude oil and specialised marine vessels, accounted for 86.08 per cent of Nigeria’s shipments to the continent.
The report read, “Analysis by commodities showed that the main commodities exported to African countries in the quarter under review were ‘petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals, crude’ valued at N1.94tn accounting for 39.57 per cent of total exports to Africa, ‘Motor Spirit, Ordinary’ with N707.05bn or 14.42 per cent, ‘Gas oil’ with N692.08bn or 14.12 per cent, ‘Lightvessels, fire-floats, floating cranes, and other vessels not specified in 8905’ N497.96bn or 10.16 per cent, and ‘Kerosine type jet fuel’ with N383.02bn or 7.81 per cent.
The top five products accounted for 86.08 per cent of total exports to Africa.”
In total, fuel exports to African countries reached N4.9tn in Q3 2025, a figure significantly larger than the N595bn recorded as imports from African nations during the same period.
Ivory Coast remained Nigeria’s biggest African market, taking in goods valued at N1.44tn, followed by Ghana (N714bn), South Africa (N710bn), Togo (N531bn), and Senegal (N418bn). These five countries alone accounted for 77.8 per cent of the total export value.
Although the NBS did not reveal the source of export, the growing share of refined petroleum in Nigeria’s export basket mirrors early signs of the “Dangote effect”, the shift in regional trade expected from Africa’s largest refinery.
Until recently, Nigeria was almost entirely dependent on imported petrol despite being Africa’s biggest crude producer. But the entry of the 650,000-barrels-per-day Dangote Refinery into the market has increased domestic availability and opened a pathway for surplus production to be sold across African markets.
It is also predicted that the refinery’s full ramp-up could deepen Nigeria’s integration into the African Continental Free Trade Area by enabling competitive pricing and shorter supply routes for fuel-dependent economies.
On the import side, the NBS noted that Nigeria’s biggest purchases from African countries were crude petroleum valued at N96.27bn, fertiliser inputs (diammonium hydrogen orthophosphate) worth N48.96bn, and light commercial vehicles totalling N39.93bn.
In his Independence Day broadcast, President Bola Tinubu said Nigeria has become a net exporter after recording a trade surplus for five consecutive quarters. He said this in a broadcast to mark Nigeria’s Independence Anniversary.
“We are now selling more to the world than we are buying, a fundamental shift that strengthens our currency and creates jobs at home,” he said.
With petrol now one of its strongest export items to Africa, Nigeria is gradually becoming a petrol-exporting nation, a remarkable turnaround for a country long known for chronic fuel shortages and refinery failures. This trend could strengthen in subsequent quarters as more local refining capacity comes online, signalling the beginning of a new era in Nigeria’s energy trade.
punch.ng
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