Shell lifted force majeure on exports of Nigeria’s Bonny Light crude grade on November 22 after the restart of the 150,000 bpd Nembe Creek Trunk pipeline. Bonny Light loadings have been disrupted for nearly a month after the pipeline came under repeated attack from militants. Bonny Light is one of Nigeria’s main export grades. It has a gravity of 32.9 API, sulfur content of 0.16%. Shell operates the terminal to export Bonny Light, while the Nembe Creek Trunk link is operated by Aiteo Exploration and Production Ltd.
Loadings of Forcados, Nigeria’s other export grade, was also under force majeure between August and September due to leakage near its terminal. Many of Nigeria’s main oil fields, terminals, pipelines, and other facilities came under repeated attacks from a recent resurgence which exacerbated their existing technical and operational problems. These issues have clouded Nigeria’s crude output outlook. Nigeria pumped fewer than 1.55 million bpd of crude oil in recent months, well below its full capacity of 2.2 million bpd. Its output is forecast around 1.7 million bpd through April 2022, below its pre-pandemic level of 1.9 million bpd.
