Nigeria’s urea exports upward thrust 64% as Center East struggle sparks international scarcity – Businessday NG
Nigeria’s urea exports rose 64 % year-on-year within the first quarter of the 12 months, as geopolitical struggle within the Center East disrupted a key transport course that accounts for 35 % of world provides.
The rustic’s urea exports rose to £1.3bn within the first quarter of 2026 from £797.7bn within the corresponding duration of 2025, consistent with contemporary knowledge from the Place of business for Nationwide Statistics (NBS).
The struggle within the Center East diverts international business. The struggle has successfully closed the Strait of Hormuz, using up fertilizer costs and diverting international call for to selection manufacturers. Nigerian fertilizer producers are profiting from tricky marketplace stipulations, expanding shipments to primary world locations together with Brazil, the USA, India, Ethiopia and Ukraine.
Emerging exports have equipped an important spice up to Nigeria’s non-oil export profits. Gideon Negedu, former govt secretary of the Fertilizer Manufacturers and Providers Affiliation of Nigeria (FEPSAN), stated the rustic is situated to look sustained source of revenue expansion as international call for intensifies.
“For our local urea industry, the current increase in demand is a blessing,” Negedu stated in a prior interview with BusinessDay.
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Prime fuel costs scale back Ecu manufacturing. Whilst the Ecu Union produces its personal nitrogen-based fertilizers, the method is based closely on imported herbal fuel. Gasoline costs in Europe have risen greater than 20 % for the reason that get started of hostilities, forcing regional manufacturers to chop urea manufacturing as production prices transform prohibitive.
In consequence, manufacturing cuts in Europe and the Center East have pressured continental consumers to show to imports, additional accelerating call for for Nigerian merchandise.
An Indorama worker, who spoke on situation of anonymity, showed a considerable build up in world orders since February. “We are seeing a steady increase in orders, although we are prioritizing our commitments to existing customers first,” the supply stated, including that export quantity is predicted to extend additional in the second one quarter.
Home costs upward thrust amid capability usage. Nigeria has 3 primary urea manufacturing vegetation (Notore, Indorama and Dangote) with a blended capability of 6.5 million metric lots. Those amenities are totally operational and feature produced roughly 3.65 million metric lots of urea in 2023.
Aliko Dangote, Chairman of the Dangote Crew, stated the corporate’s production capability has performed an important position in cushioning the affect of world provide in West, Central and East Africa. In line with him, the corporate has actively redirected shipments to African markets that weren’t up to now necessary export locations.
On the other hand, the export increase has severely affected the home marketplace. The native worth of a 50kg bag of urea has risen 53 consistent with cent, from a mean of £33,000 in February to £50,500 recently, including important force to meals inflation around the nation.
Josephine Okojie-Okeiyi
Josephine Okojie-Okeiyi is a journalist with over 5 years of reporting revel in. He writes about trade, agriculture, uncooked fabrics, local weather trade and environmental problems. He’s a member of the Thomson Reuters Basis and the Bloomberg Media Initiative for Africa.
