Nigeria Looks to Asia as US Ends Crude Import

The federal government has disclosed that it has turned its main focus to Asian markets as the United States has stopped buying crude oil from Nigeria and other African oil producers, having attained self-sufficiency.

The Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr Joseph Dawha made this disclosure in Abuja while making a presentation at the ongoing 2015 Nigeria Oil and Gas (NOG) Conference and Exhibition.

Dahwa who was represented by the corporation’s group executive director, Corporate Planning and Strategy, Dr Tim Okon, said Nigeria, like most other oil producing countries, is looking towards Asian markets to sell its crude.

According to Dahwa, “The US increased its reserve from about 29 billion in 2006 to 44 billion barrels in 2014. For the last nine years, American oil production has climbed steadily from five million barrels per day (mbpd) in 2005 to 8.6mbpd last year.

“Unconventional resources that had in the past, unimaginable costs, has seen production costs decline significantly and therefore changed the landscape, leaving little doubt that the US is on the verge of self-sufficiency and potentially, if they get the permit, an exporter of oil.”