US imports of Nigerian kerosene-type jet fuel sky-rocketed by 919% year-on-year

Key Takeaways

  • Nigerian jet fuel exports to the U.S. jumped 10-fold to 2.87 million barrels in 2025.
  • Just 86,000 barrels were imported across the U.S. from Nigeria between 1993 and 2023.
  • The 2025 surge was concentrated in five months, amid East Coast refinery disruptions.
  • No Nigerian jet fuel imports were recorded through August 2026, suggesting the surge was temporary.

Nigeria's jet fuel exports to the United States surged in 2025 and then disappeared.

The U.S. imported 2.873 million barrels of Nigerian kerosene-type jet fuel in 2025, up from 282,000 barrels in 2024, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. From 1993 through 2023, cumulative imports totaled just 86,000 barrels, a fraction of the single-year 2025 volume.

Imports were concentrated in five months, coinciding with maintenance at the Phillips 66 Bayway refinery in New Jersey that cut East Coast refining capacity in early 2025, according to EIA's Today in Energy series. Weekly EIA data show East Coast refinery utilization dropping from 82.5 percent to 54.8 percent in a single week that February.

By EIA's most recent release, covering data through August 2026, no Nigerian jet fuel imports had been recorded for the year. The pattern points to a temporary opening rather than a lasting shift.

Source:

Energy Information Administration (EIA)

Period:

2025
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