Nigeria, Africa’s leading oil producer, spent a staggering N1.19 trillion importing crude oil in the first quarter of 2025, exposing a deep contradiction in its energy sector. The figure, released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in its Q1 2025 Foreign Trade in Goods report, makes crude oil the country’s third most imported commodity—trailing only gas oil at N1.83 trillion and petrol (PMS) at N1.76 trillion.
Although Nigeria exports billions of naira worth of crude oil, its domestic refineries continue to suffer from inconsistent and inadequate local supply. This has forced operators, including the much-anticipated Dangote Refinery and various modular refineries, to source crude internationally to maintain operations. According to the report, the imported crude labelled as “petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals, crude”—accounted for 7.7% of total imports.
The United States led Nigeria’s crude import sources, delivering N726.84 billion worth of oil, amounting to 61% of total crude imports. Angola and Algeria followed with N223.58 billion and N122.37 billion, respectively.
The ongoing import trend underscores the failure of key government initiatives such as the Domestic Crude Supply Obligation and the Domestic Crude Refining Requirement, both of which were introduced to ensure local processors have access to Nigerian crude.
Overall, Nigeria spent N4.78 trillion importing petroleum products crude, gas oil, and petrol representing more than 30% of the country’s total imports in Q1, which stood at N15.43 trillion. Compared to Q1 2024, this marks a 4.59% increase, though it reflects a 7.02% drop from Q4 2024.
Mineral fuels continued to dominate Nigeria’s import profile, valued at N4.97 trillion or 32.23% of all imports. The United States was Nigeria’s third-largest trade partner during the quarter, with total trade reaching N1.42 trillion more than half of that from crude exports to Nigeria.
At the same time, Nigeria exported N12.96 trillion worth of crude and petroleum products, accounting for 62.89% of its total exports. While crude oil remains Nigeria’s top export, the report showed a 16.35% drop year-on-year and a 6.01% decline from Q4 2024. Major export destinations included India, the Netherlands, the U.S., France, and Spain.
The persistent gap between Nigeria’s vast crude oil production and its inability to refine enough for local use continues to raise doubts about the country’s refining independence and the real impact of downstream oil sector reforms.
