02-25-2020, 11:47 AM
Glut as oil buyers dump Nigeria’s crude grade
February 25, 2020 Adeola Yusuf
![[Image: crude-oil.png?fit=666%2C335&ssl=1]](https://i2.wp.com/www.newtelegraphng.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/crude-oil.png?fit=666%2C335&ssl=1)
Volume crashes to 228,000 barrels bpd
Nigeria’s crude oil grades were at the weekend rocked by glut as buyers from Europe dumped their March purchase plans, crude grades from Africa’s biggest exporter, in favor of grades from North Sea and Russia.
This, a loading schedule sighted by this newspaper showed at the weekend, has, among other things, even crashed volume of Bonny Light, a crude grade from Nigeria, to 228,000 barrels per day.
Though Indian and Indonesian buyer mopped up some crude volumes from the country, the buying failed to absorb cargoes abandoned by European buyers.
Nigeria will export seven cargoes of Bonny Light in April, with volumes set to fall to 228,000 barrels per day (bpd) from 245,000 bpd in March, the loading schedule showed.
Exports of Forcados were set at nine cargoes or 283,000 bpd in April, up slightly from 279,000 bpd in March.
“A relatively high glut of cargoes remains from Nigeria’s March programme as Indian and Indonesian buying failed to absorb cargoes spurned by European markets in favour of North Sea and Russian grades,” a report on the schedule showed.
Nigeria’s preliminary loading programmes for April have, however, continued to emerge, after differentials were weighed down in the last trading cycle by sluggish demand in both Eastern and Western markets.
A single cargo of Yoho is due to be exported by Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) on April 9-10, the schedule revealed.
Equatorial Guinea’s Zafiro is set to export two cargoes for loading on April 1 and 3.
Angolan cargoes for March had just about sold out, traders said, amid the lowest sale prices in over a year as Chinese buying largely halted amid economic disruption from the coronavirus outbreak.
Meanwhile, more facts emerged at the weekend on how Alpine Penelope crude oil tanker was attacked while in transit towards Lagos, resulting in the kidnap of nine personnel.
Dryad Global, which revealed this on its website, added that the identities of the kidnapped crew remained unknown, although it highlighted that the vessel is known to have a crew of 24 personnel, consisting of Georgians, Filipino and Ukrainian nationals.
Dryad, which outlined that the “source confidence level” of the incident is “high,” said the fate of the crew remained unclear at this stage.
This is the seventh incident to occur in the waters off Cotonou since January 19, according to Dryad.
Of those, five have resulted in illegal boardings offshore, two of which resulted in kidnappings of crew, Dryad pointed out.
“Within 2019, the waters off Lome and Cotonou witnessed an increase in both volume and severity of maritime crime incidents,” Dryad said in a company statement posted on its website.
“Dryad advise that all vessels transiting the area be subject to thorough transit risk assessment prior to entry into the area and implement full mitigation measures,” Dryad added.
Dryad describes itself as an expert in maritime risk and global security. According to the company’s website, there have been 544 attacks on commercial shipping in the last two years.
In November last year, Marine Services Provider Swire Pacific Offshore (SPO) revealed that the Pacific Warden Anchor Handling Tug Supply Vessel was attacked offshore Equatorial Guinea.
SPO noted that 15 crew members were on board at the time of the attack. Eight were said to be “safely ashore and unharmed” while the remaining seven were said to have been “taken by the attackers.” SPO revealed on Christmas day that these seven crew members had been released.
In December 2019, Bloomberg reported further kidnappings offshore Nigeria and Cameroon.
February 25, 2020 Adeola Yusuf
Volume crashes to 228,000 barrels bpd
Nigeria’s crude oil grades were at the weekend rocked by glut as buyers from Europe dumped their March purchase plans, crude grades from Africa’s biggest exporter, in favor of grades from North Sea and Russia.
This, a loading schedule sighted by this newspaper showed at the weekend, has, among other things, even crashed volume of Bonny Light, a crude grade from Nigeria, to 228,000 barrels per day.
Though Indian and Indonesian buyer mopped up some crude volumes from the country, the buying failed to absorb cargoes abandoned by European buyers.
Nigeria will export seven cargoes of Bonny Light in April, with volumes set to fall to 228,000 barrels per day (bpd) from 245,000 bpd in March, the loading schedule showed.
Exports of Forcados were set at nine cargoes or 283,000 bpd in April, up slightly from 279,000 bpd in March.
“A relatively high glut of cargoes remains from Nigeria’s March programme as Indian and Indonesian buying failed to absorb cargoes spurned by European markets in favour of North Sea and Russian grades,” a report on the schedule showed.
Nigeria’s preliminary loading programmes for April have, however, continued to emerge, after differentials were weighed down in the last trading cycle by sluggish demand in both Eastern and Western markets.
A single cargo of Yoho is due to be exported by Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) on April 9-10, the schedule revealed.
Equatorial Guinea’s Zafiro is set to export two cargoes for loading on April 1 and 3.
Angolan cargoes for March had just about sold out, traders said, amid the lowest sale prices in over a year as Chinese buying largely halted amid economic disruption from the coronavirus outbreak.
Meanwhile, more facts emerged at the weekend on how Alpine Penelope crude oil tanker was attacked while in transit towards Lagos, resulting in the kidnap of nine personnel.
Dryad Global, which revealed this on its website, added that the identities of the kidnapped crew remained unknown, although it highlighted that the vessel is known to have a crew of 24 personnel, consisting of Georgians, Filipino and Ukrainian nationals.
Dryad, which outlined that the “source confidence level” of the incident is “high,” said the fate of the crew remained unclear at this stage.
This is the seventh incident to occur in the waters off Cotonou since January 19, according to Dryad.
Of those, five have resulted in illegal boardings offshore, two of which resulted in kidnappings of crew, Dryad pointed out.
“Within 2019, the waters off Lome and Cotonou witnessed an increase in both volume and severity of maritime crime incidents,” Dryad said in a company statement posted on its website.
“Dryad advise that all vessels transiting the area be subject to thorough transit risk assessment prior to entry into the area and implement full mitigation measures,” Dryad added.
Dryad describes itself as an expert in maritime risk and global security. According to the company’s website, there have been 544 attacks on commercial shipping in the last two years.
In November last year, Marine Services Provider Swire Pacific Offshore (SPO) revealed that the Pacific Warden Anchor Handling Tug Supply Vessel was attacked offshore Equatorial Guinea.
SPO noted that 15 crew members were on board at the time of the attack. Eight were said to be “safely ashore and unharmed” while the remaining seven were said to have been “taken by the attackers.” SPO revealed on Christmas day that these seven crew members had been released.
In December 2019, Bloomberg reported further kidnappings offshore Nigeria and Cameroon.