Nigerian crude oil is divided into two classes. They are derivatives of sweet and light oil. It is mostly low in sulfur. Under OPEC, Nigeria is the largest producer of light crude. The light oil from this West African nation is similar in composition to oil extracted from the North Sea. It is generally known as beautiful light. You can find other Nigerian black gold grades like Brass River, Qua Iboe, Escravos blend, Pennington Anfan etc. It is identified based on its export deposit.

The biggest country that imports oil from Nigeria is the mighty United States of America. Of the 100% of the oil the US imports annually, Nigeria supplies about 10% of all US oil imports. This represents 40% of Nigeria’s oil exports. It is the fifth largest oil import market for the greater United States of America.

You can find up to 6 oil export depots in Nigeria. They are mainly owned by multinational oil companies. The major oil companies in Nigeria are Chevron, Shell, Mobil, Texaco, Agip, etc. BP has yet to discover the potential of Nigerian crude oil. Shell is believed to have two oil terminals while the remaining four are owned by Chevron, Mobil and Texaco respectively. The forcado deposit is owned by Shell. It has the capacity to accumulate around 13 million barrels, as well as the nearby Bonny deposit. Mobil controls the Qua Iboe deposit located in Awka Ibom State, Nigeria. Chevron operates the Escravos terminal located in Delta State. It is capable of storing up to 36 million barrels. Agip manages the brass deposit located in the state of Rivers. It has a storage capacity of up to 3 million barrels. Finally, Texaco manages the Pennington deposit. Its storage capacity is not known.