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The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) will begin exporting a new light, sweet crude grade, Cawthorne, from March 2026, in a move aimed at deepening Nigeria’s production recovery and widening its footprint in the global oil market.
According to a report by Reuters, an NNPC spokesperson confirmed the development, describing it as part of greater efforts to ramp up output and consolidate recent gains in crude production.
The planned rollout comes as Nigeria pushes to rebuild volumes after years of setbacks triggered by pipeline vandalism, crude theft, and unrest in oil-producing communities. It also follows the introduction of two new blends, Obodo in 2025 and Utapate in 2024, underscoring the country’s renewed production drive as Africa’s leading oil exporter.
Sources familiar with the matter said Cawthorne crude is scheduled for its first export in the third week of March. With an API gravity of 36.4, the new grade is comparable to Bonny Light and is expected to attract refiners seeking high yields of gasoline and diesel.
A trader disclosed that NNPC issued a tender last week for cargo loading between March 24 and 25, signaling that commercial marketing of the grade is already underway.
Market intelligence firm Kpler noted that the crude will be exported through the Floating Storage and Offloading (FSO) vessel Cawthorne, which has a storage capacity of about 2.2 million barrels. The FSO is designed to enhance production and evacuation from Oil Mining Lease (OML) 18 and adjoining assets in the Eastern Niger Delta.
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Kpler estimates that, based on the vessel’s capacity, Cawthorne could lift Nigeria’s combined crude and condensate output from about 1.65 million barrels per day (bpd) to roughly 1.7 million bpd for the rest of the year.
Nigeria’s production has been edging closer to its OPEC+ quota of 1.5 million bpd, with output standing at 1.48 million bpd in January, according to OPEC data. The addition of Cawthorne is expected to provide extra headroom and market flexibility.
Beyond volumes, the new blend could expand Nigeria’s crude slate for international refiners, attract buyers seeking specific light, sweet grades, and boost foreign exchange inflows. Increased export streams would also strengthen government revenues at a time when fiscal stability remains closely tied to oil earnings.
New crude grades are typically differentiated by sulfur content, API gravity, and production source, enabling producers to tailor offerings to particular refinery configurations and shifting global demand patterns.
In November 2024, NNPC officially launched the Utapate crude oil blend on the international market, calling it a milestone for Nigeria’s export profile. Earlier, in July 2024, NNPC and its partner, Sterling Oil Exploration & Energy Production Company (SEEPCO), lifted the first 950,000-barrel cargo of Utapate, which was shipped to Spain.
