Crude oil import records map out a commercial geography free of political rhetoric. As Europe grapples with the reconfiguration of its flows following international sanctions and tensions in the Middle East, Spanish refineries operated by Repsol, Cepsa and BP have found in Africa a key operational pivot. Between January and July 2026, Spain imported 11.85 million metric tons of crude oil from Africa, an increase of 9.8% compared with the 10.79 million tons recorded during the same period the previous year. New development: Senegal supplied 800,148 tons in 2025. Transparency note/Disclosure: The author holds no open positions, financial interests or advisory ties with any of the shippers, shipping companies, investment funds or public administrations mentioned in this report.
The undisputed engine of this Atlantic flow remains Nigeria. The OPEC giant supplied 6.23 million metric tons to the Spanish system throughout 2025 and accelerated the pace during the first seven months of 2026, with an additional 3.70 million tons. For the process engineers at the refineries in Cartagena, Bilbao and Castellón, the importance of Nigerian Bonny Light lies not only in its volume but also in its chemical properties: a light, sweet crude with low sulfur content, ideally suited to maximizing diesel and kerosene yields during distillation while consuming less energy in the desulfurization process.
What Reaches the Canary Islands
However, the most dramatic increase in the African market share has come from Libya. Despite institutional fragmentation and sporadic disruptions at terminals in the Gulf of Sirte, Libyan crude shipments to Spanish ports totaled 4.43 million tons in 2025 and have already reached 3.55 million tons through July 2026, comfortably exceeding the figure for the same period a year earlier—2.96 million tons. The logistical proximity of its loading ports shortens shipping routes across the Mediterranean to less than four days, significantly reducing maritime freight costs.
The third pillar of African supply is located in the north of the continent. Algeria supplied 3.75 million tons in 2025 and has maintained a regular flow in 2026, with 2.01 million tons through July. Deliveries from Algiers, marked by stable monthly volumes ranging from 190,000 to 486,000 tons—the latter reached this past July—confirm that the trade in liquid hydrocarbons operates according to a strictly commercial logic, independent of regional diplomatic fluctuations.
Dependence on African crude is reinforced by a broad secondary supply network that remains crucial to the flexibility of plants on the Iberian Peninsula. Angola supplied 1.55 million tons in 2025 and recorded 1.15 million tons during the first seven months of 2026, with notable monthly peaks such as the 268,094 tons imported in June.
Stability
Meanwhile, following its emergence on the crude oil exporter map, Senegal supplied Spain with 800,148 tons in 2025 and has consolidated steady shipments in 2026, with 269,563 tons accumulated so far. Equatorial Guinea and Ghana jointly contributed more than 1.09 million tons in 2025, while in 2026 they have maintained shipments of 417,970 tons and 242,533 tons, respectively. This network is further supplemented by occasional shipments from Cameroon, totaling 264,678 tons, and Côte d’Ivoire, with 69,179 tons accumulated in 2026.
Overall, in 2025, African-origin oil accounted for 18.42 million metric tons out of a total of 61.42 million tons imported by Spain, consolidating a 30.0% market share. This diversification of sources enables Spanish operators to mitigate the risks of volatility in supertanker rates and respond swiftly to any disruption in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait or the Suez Canal.
The article From Nigeria’s ‘Bonny Light’ to Senegal: The Canary Islands Redefine Energy Security was first published on canarymaritime.com.
