US Oil Export Gains More Momentum, Threatens Nigeria’s

• US Oil Export Gains More Momentum, Threatens Nigeria’s

The United States’ monthly crude oil exports have hit the one million barrels per day mark, further penetrating some of Nigeria’s major export destinations.

Since last year, Nigeria has lost some of its market share in Europe, its biggest regional market, as crude oil export from the US continued to increase.

The US had in December 2015 removed the 40-year-old restrictions on its crude exports following the rapid growth of its oil production from 2013 to 2015.

The US Energy Information Administration said in late March that the country exported crude oil to 26 different countries in 2016, compared with 10 countries the previous year.

Among the countries were buyers of Nigeria crude including Netherlands, China, Italy, the United Kingdom, Colombia, Singapore, Peru, France and Spain.

On Tuesday, the EIA said the US crude oil and petroleum product gross exports had more than doubled over the past six years, increasing from 2.4 million bpd in 2010 to 5.2 million bpd in 2016.

It noted that the US exported an average of 520,000 bpd last year, adding, “The US crude oil exports reached 1.1 million bpd in February 2017, the highest monthly level on record.

“While Canada remains the largest destination for the US crude oil exports, Canada’s share of total US crude oil exports has declined, dropping from 92 per cent in 2015 (427,000 bpd) to 58 per cent in 2016 (301,000 bpd). Other leading destinations for the US crude oil exports in 2016 included the Netherlands, Curacao, China, Italy, and the United Kingdom.”

According to the EIA, beyond the lifting of crude oil export restrictions, other factors such as favourable price differentials, lower shipping costs, and rising domestic production have increased the US crude oil exports.

The agency said the US production fell through the first nine months of 2016, but increased at the end of 2016 and had continued to increase through the first five months of 2017.