New president, old problems for Nigeria
Abuja is still waiting for the Dangote refinery to solve the country’s expensive fuel subsidy problem
May is a critical month for Nigeria. The country will inaugurate President-elect Bola Tinubu, following a fiercely contested election and despite the two main opposition parties launching legal challenges to the result. And the huge Dangote refinery near Lagos might be poised to begin commissioning during the month, in a move that will have far-reaching consequences for Nigeria’s trade balance and budget, as well as the wider Atlantic basin’s downstream and freight sectors. Both the US and the UK congratulated Tinubu on his victory, but US ambassador Mary Beth Leonard said that “it is clear that the electoral process as a whole... failed to meet Nigerians’ expectations” and called upon the c
Also in this section
13 March 2026
Brussels is again weighing a cap on gas prices amid the Hormuz crisis, but the measure could backfire by deterring the LNG cargoes Europe urgently needs
12 March 2026
Emergency oil stocks provide a last line of defence to oil market shocks, so the IEA’s unprecedented 400m bl release represents something of a double-edged sword
12 March 2026
LPG could rapidly expand access to clean cooking across Africa and prevent hundreds of thousands of deaths from indoor air pollution each year, but infrastructure shortages and regulatory barriers are slowing investment and market growth
11 March 2026
Missiles over Dubai and disruption in Hormuz are testing the emirate’s reputation—and shaking the energy hub at the centre of the Gulf economy






