Nigeria's gas shipment diverted to Asia as US-Iran tensions squeeze global LNG supply

A shipment of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Nigeria has been redirected from Europe to Asia after a sharp spike in Asian gas prices created a lucrative arbitrage opportunity for traders, highlighting how rapidly shifting global energy markets can reshape trade routes.

Shipping data from analytics firm Kpler showed that the LNG tanker BW Brussels, which loaded a cargo at the Nigeria LNG Bonny Island Terminal on 27 February, initially signalled a westward journey towards Europe before changing course and sailing south towards Asia via the Cape of Good Hope.

The diversion came as Asian spot LNG prices surged amid tightening global supply, driven partly by geopolitical tensions between the United States and Iran and by a production suspension in Qatar, according to a Reuters report.

Benchmark prices in Asia have climbed sharply in recent days. Data from S&P Global Platts shows the Japan Korea Marker, Asia’s main spot LNG benchmark, jumped by 68.52 percent to about $25.39 per million British thermal units for April delivery last week, its highest level in three years.

By comparison, spot LNG prices for north-west Europe rose to roughly $15.48 per mmBtu for April delivery. Although that represents a strong rally, the widening price gap means Asia has become the more profitable destination for flexible LNG cargoes.


Widening arbitrage between Asia and Europe

Market analysts say this widening spread between Asian LNG prices and Europe’s benchmark gas hub, the Title Transfer Facility, has opened a clear arbitrage window for traders.

“So far, one LNG tanker that loaded in Nigeria last week has diverted to Asia from its initial Atlantic-bound course after spot prices surged,” said Go Katayama, a principal insight analyst at Kpler.

“BW Brussels appears to have changed course from an initial signal toward France and is now heading toward Asia via the Cape of Good Hope.”

The shift illustrates how quickly global gas trade flows can change when price signals favour one region over another.

According to Qasim Afghan, an analyst at Spark Commodities, global front-month arbitrage opportunities have “increased significantly” and now favour Asian markets across several major LNG export locations.

The tightening supply environment has also prompted Asian buyers to scramble for alternative LNG sources.

Government officials told Reuters that India is exploring new LNG suppliers to offset reduced Qatari volumes, while state-owned energy firm Petrobangla plans to issue tenders for immediate LNG deliveries.

Despite Asia’s price advantage, analysts note that Europe could still attract some flexible cargoes because of the deep liquidity of its gas trading market, which allows traders to hedge risks more easily.

The disruption in Qatari supply has intensified competition between buyers in the Atlantic and Pacific basins for available LNG shipments. Asian buyers account for more than 80 percent of Qatar’s LNG exports, making the region particularly sensitive to supply shocks.

For Nigeria, the rerouted cargo underscores the growing importance of flexible destination clauses in LNG contracts and the powerful influence of global price signals on energy trade flows. If Asian prices remain significantly higher than European benchmarks in the coming weeks, analysts say more Atlantic Basin cargoes could follow the same eastward path.

By Segun Adeyemi, Business Insider Africa

Nigeria: ‘Renewed Hope’ or ‘Hopelessness’?

Nigeria’s Bola Tinubu was elected on promises to tackle the nation’s widespread violence and address two of its root causes: Poverty and corruption. But with the country going to the polls next year, has he delivered on his "Renewed Hope" agenda? Mehdi Hasan goes head-to-head with Daniel Bwala, Tinubu’s once staunch critic-turned-Special Adviser on Media and Policy Communications, on the administration’s record in office and where he stands on his past accusations against his current boss.

CGTN Africa

How Nigeria spent over N8bn on abducted school children in a decade

Nigeria’s worsening insecurity has continued to place school children among the most vulnerable targets of criminal gangs.

SBM Intelligence reveals a new analysis, showing that Governments in Nigeria have paid nearly N8 billion in ransom linked to school abductions between 2014 and 2025, reinforcing a cycle that continues to make schools attractive targets for armed groups.

The analysis, entitled “Monkey Business: Timeline of Nigeria’s Government Funding of School Abductions (2014–2025)”, tracks publicly reported ransom payments made by federal and state authorities following major school kidnapping incidents across the country.

The timeline shows how ransom payments have gradually become embedded in the response to mass abductions, even though Nigerian law formally prohibits negotiating with kidnappers.

The timeline begins with the 2014 abduction of 276 schoolgirls in Chibok, Borno State, after which the federal government reportedly paid N5 billion as part of negotiations.

In 2018, another set of 276 school girls were kidnapped in Yobe, and an undisclosed ransom was paid.

In 2020, 275 school girls were kidnapped in Katsina State and the Government paid N30 million, while in 2021, in Niger State 200 girls were abducted and the government paid N50 million, the same year in Niger State another 42 girls were abducted and a ransom of N15 million was paid.

In Kaduna State 39 school girls were kidnapped in 2021, and the sum of N32 million was paid, and in Zamfara in the same year 279 were kidnapped and N60 million paid.

In 2024, Kaduna State witnessed another school children abduction with 287 kidnapped and a ransom of N1 billion paid and in 2025, 327 school children were abducted in Niger State and the government paid N2 billion.

SB Morgen Intelligence report shows that more than N8 billion has been expended through ransom payments, security operations, negotiations, and emergency responses following a wave of mass school kidnappings that has shaken communities and disrupted education nationwide.

In Febrauary 2026, an AFP investigation report alleged that the Nigerian Government paid a huge ransom estimated at N2 billion or up to $7 million, to secure the release of 230 pupils abducted from St, Mary Catholic School in November 2025.

Intelligence sources told AFP the money was flown by helicopter to Boko Haram commander, Ali Ngulde in Gwoza, with two militant commanders freed as part of the deal.

The Government has strongly denied the claims. However, there is a history, since 2014, Nigerian governments have paid nearly N6 billion ($4.4million) in confirmed ransom payments to armed groups for kidnapped school children.

Federal and State Authorities both participated, despite laws prohibiting such payments. Each ransom funds the next abduction, turning education into a target and ensuring the cycle of violence continues.

Ike Chilaka-Osuagwu, an Educationist, described the scenario as worrisome, and a point to the fact that the government lacks the political will to curb banditry and kidnapping, especially against school children in the country.

Besides, he emphasised that as far as the Government continues to divert resources to pay ransom, economic development will continue to elude the country.

“The Government lacks the political will to end this nonsense. It will continue to affect productivity, and encourage diversion of funds and energy required to improve the economy,” he said.

Abductions are a long-standing pattern in Nigeria. Between July 2023 and June 2024 alone, SBM Intelligence, an Africa-centric security analysis and strategic consulting firm, found that at least 7,568 people were kidnapped in 1,130 cases across the country.

During this period, the kidnappers demanded approximately N11 billion (about $7.5 million) as ransom, and received N1 billion (about $0.65 million).

This is despite the fact that the Nigerian Senate outlawed ransom payments to kidnappers in 2022 and made abduction punishable by death.

According to the report, all these payments illustrate how kidnapping for ransom has evolved into a structured criminal economy targeting schools in the country.

By Charles Ogwo, Business Day 

Nigeria and Ethiopia listed among countries to benefit from Dangote’s $1 billion plan

Dangote Cement, controlled by Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, currently boasts an estimated production capacity of 55.17 million tons.

With the $1 billion investment, the cement manufacturer, in the span of four years, intends to boost production capacity by 45% to 80 million tons.

This information was disclosed by the company’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Gbenga Fapohunda, on Wednesday, during an investor conference call in the country’s commercial hub, Lagos.

He noted that the fund would be channeled in “Nigeria, Ethiopia, and some other countries.”

In February, the company disclosed that it had signed a $1 billion agreement with China’s Sinoma International Engineering to construct new plants and expand existing facilities across Africa.

The landmark deal, signed in Lagos, covers 12 projects across seven African countries and is part of DCP’s plan to raise production capacity to 80 million tonnes per annum by 2030.

This new initiative follows a similar plan established by Dangote to increase exports of cement and clinker to 10 million tons by 2030, in contrast to 1.4 million tons in 2025.

Dangote Cement recently reported an 18.6 per cent rise in cement and clinker exports from Nigeria, dispatching 34 shiploads of clinker to Cameroon and Ghana during the year.

As seen on Bloomberg, the company’s CFO noted that the expansion plan would be financed with operating cash flow, supplier credit, commercial papers, bonds, and bank loans.

This initiative had earlier been spoken about by the company's Group Managing Director, Arvind Pathak, who noted that the cement company would continue to commission new capacity and advance projects across several African markets.

“We are confident in our growth trajectory and our ability to capitalise on Africa’s robust cement demand fundamentals,” Mr Pathak said in an earnings release filed with the Nigerian Exchange.

“We will continue commissioning new capacity, including the transformational 6 metric tonne per annum (Mta) Itori plant, while advancing expansion projects in Ethiopia, Cameroon, South Africa, Zambia, and Senegal.”

A few days back, Dangote Cement reported its highest profit on record.


Dangote Cement's recent milestones

The company disclosed that net profit for 2025 increased to N1 trillion, or almost $730 million at an exchange rate of N1,369.06 to $1, more than doubling the previous year's performance.

Revenue increased by 20.3% to N4.3 trillion, or nearly $3.14 billion, thanks mostly to stronger pricing and solid domestic demand.

The record earnings come despite a minor drop in sales volumes, highlighting the group's pivot toward margin protection, cost efficiency, and export growth as it positions Nigeria as a regional manufacturing hub.

In February 2026, Dangote Cement Plc became the first company to list Commercial Papers (CPs) on Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX).

The listing follows the opening of a Commercial Paper window by NGX on December 3, 2025, after gaining approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Dangote Cement's Series 1 and Series 2 Commercial Papers were admitted to its N500 billion Commercial Paper Issuance Programme.

The 181-day Series 1 CP for N19.95 billion will mature on May 20, 2026. The N99.92 billion Series 2 CP has a tenor of 265 days and will mature on August 12, 2026.

Both instruments were issued at a discount and will be repaid at their par value of N1,000 upon maturity. Series 1 and Series 2 provided indicated yields of 17.50% and 19%, respectively.

In October last year, the cement company commissioned a $160 million plant in Attingué, about 30 kilometres north of Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire’s commercial hub.

The 50-hectare facility can produce three million metric tonnes per year, making it one of the company's largest sites outside Nigeria.

By Chinedu Okafor, Business Insider Africa

Nigeria halts Christian pilgrimages to Holy Land over Middle East conflict

Nigerian authorities have suspended all pilgrimages to Israel and the occupied West Bank with immediate effect, citing security concerns linked to the escalating conflict in the Middle East.

The decision was announced by the Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission (NCPC), the national body responsible for coordinating Christian pilgrimages.

In a statement, the commission said the measure was necessary to prioritise the "safety and comfort" of Nigerian pilgrims.

The conflict has spread across the Middle East following US and Israeli strikes on Iran, which killed the country's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iran has responded by launching attacks on Israel and US-allied states in the Gulf.

Many flights to the Middle East have been cancelled, as countries across the region have shut their airspace, leaving passengers stranded.

Rev John Hayab from the Christian Association of Nigeria told the BBC that all of the Nigerian pilgrims in Israel and the West Bank - about 600 - had been evacuated to Jordan and then back to Nigeria since the conflict broke out on Saturday.

The suspension of Christian pilgrimages applies to all state-organised trips as well as those arranged by private tour operators. Officials said the ban would remain in place until the situation in the region stabilises., external

Thousands of Nigerian Christians go on pilgrimages each year to Biblical sites in Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Nazareth. The journeys, often subsidised or coordinated by state governments, are a significant part of Nigeria's religious calendar.

Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation, is home to a large Christian population, particularly in the south of the country. The pilgrimages are widely regarded as being spiritually significant, with many saving for years to make the trip.

Easter, which falls in a month, is one of the most popular times for Christians to go to Israel and the West Bank.

Many Nigerian Muslims trying to get to the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia for the Umrah, also known as the "lesser" pilgrimage, have also been affected by the cancellation of flights to the region.

Unlike the Hajj, which has fixed dates once a year, the Umrah can be performed at any time and involves a shorter set of religious rites.

Alhaji Zaharaddeen Abubakar is one of those stranded in the northern Nigerian city of Kano after buying plane tickets and securing accommodation in Mecca.

"I wish to be there too but I can't at the moment. I'm still hoping," he told BBC Hausa.

Alhaji Musa Rabi'u Muhammed, head of the Murna travel agency in Kano State, told the BBC: "Some of our people had even boarded planes ready for take-off, but they had to be brought back down, and now they are at home."

By Chris Ewokor and Jean Otalor, BBC