What are Platts West Africa fuel price assessments?

Platts West Africa fuel price assessments are independent, daily price benchmarks for refined petroleum products — including gasoline (petrol), gasoil (diesel), jet fuel (kerosene), and LPG (butane) — based on verified, real market activity in the West African fuels market. These assessments reflect the market value at the close of trading and are used by traders, refiners, hedgers, shipping companies, and financial market participants globally to price physical contracts, manage commodity price risk, and make strategic trading decisions. Our assessments cover multiple delivery bases including STS Lome (offshore), FOB West Africa (coastal), DAP Lagos (delivered), and CFR South Africa (import parity), providing comprehensive coverage of West African oil market dynamics from the Gulf of Guinea. As a price reporting agency (PRA), S&P Global Energy Platts operates with full editorial independence — we have no proprietary trading positions and no commercial interest in where assessed prices land.

What products does Platts assess in West Africa?

Platts assesses four primary refined products in West Africa: Gasoline (Petrol) Diesel (Gasoil) Jet Fuel (Kerosene) LPG (Butane) Products are assessed on multiple delivery basis (STS Lome, FOB West Africa, DAP Lagos, CFR South Africa) and include differentials to European benchmark contracts, enabling direct comparison with global refined product markets.

What do the different delivery basis mean?

Platts assesses West African fuel prices on three primary delivery bases: STS Lome (Offshore): Reflects prices for cargoes traded on a ship-to-ship (STS) basis, in the offshore Lome market. This market is used to supply regional shorts across the Gulf of Guinea, including countries such as Ghana, Ivory Coast, Benin, and Togo. FOB West Africa (Coastal): Reflects prices for cargoes loading basis Lekki or Lagos, Nigeria, with other terminals across West Africa coastline considered in the assessment. This basis is most relevant to refiners and producers exporting from the region, including output from Nigeria's Dangote refinery. DAP Lagos: Reflects the value of refined product delivered to Lagos terminals, representing the landed cost of fuel imports into Nigeria — West Africa's largest fuel market. CFR South Africa: Reflects import parity pricing for cargoes delivered to South African ports, linking West African supply economics to Southern African demand.

What is the difference between STS Lome and FOB West Africa pricing?

STS Lome and FOB West Africa represent different delivery points with distinct pricing dynamics in the West Africa refined products market: STS Lome (Offshore): Reflects prices for cargoes in offshore floating storage near Lome, Togo Typically trades at a premium to FOB West Africa Includes STS costs Reflects the value of import supply into West Africa FOB West Africa (Coastal): Reflects prices for cargoes loaded at coastal terminals and refineries in West Africa Typically trades at a discount to STS Lome Reflects coastal loading point supply and demand The spread between STS Lome and FOB West Africa reflects storage costs, financing costs, and supply/demand dynamics at each location — making it an essential indicator for West African fuel market participants.

What is the methodology for assessing West Africa fuel prices?

S&P Global Energy Platts uses a transparent, market-based methodology to assess West African fuel prices: Data Collection: Platts gathers data from qualified market participants — including traders, brokers, refiners, shipping companies, and logistics providers — capturing concluded trades, firm bids and offers, and verified market intelligence across the West Africa fuels market. Assessment Process: Assessments are conducted during defined trading windows, during Market On Close (MOC), aligned with global market activity, with final assessments published at 4:30pm London time each trading day, reflecting the day's market consensus for West African refined products. Quality Control: Experienced price reporters review all assessments to verify if they reflect market value, cross-checking against related markets (futures, other regional prices) for consistency and investigating outliers. Transparency & Verification: Platts publishes detailed methodology and specifications documentation and maintains a robust verification process with regular audits and reviews. Market participant feedback is incorporated to continuously improve the assessment process.

What is the difference between Platts assessments and other price sources?

Platts West Africa fuel assessments differ from other price sources in several important ways: Methodology: Platts uses a transparent, market-based methodology focused on actual transactions and bids/offers, designed to reflect market value at the close of trading at 4:30pm London time each day—unlike surveys, averages, or model-based approaches used by other sources. Coverage: Platts provides comprehensive West African coverage with multiple delivery bases and product specifications, while other sources may have more limited regional or product focus. Credibility & Transparency: Platts is widely recognized as an independent, credible price reporting agency, used globally for physical contracts and financial instruments. Our methodology is transparent and subject to regular audits and reviews. Real-Time Market Data: Platts delivers real-time price updates and market commentary, and daily editorial rationale explaining each assessment outcome, while other sources may have less frequent or delayed reporting.

What is the relationship between West Africa and European fuel prices?

West African and European fuel prices are closely linked by trade flows and benchmark usage, but differ based on product specifications, trading patterns, and supply and demand. Platts publishes differentials between European and West African assessments which sheds light on this relationship.

Who Should Use Platts West Africa Fuel Price Assessments?

Traders and Trading Houses: Use Platts West Africa assessments to price physical contracts and monitor arbitrage opportunities between West African and European refined product markets. Refiners and Producers: Price export contracts and optimize supply strategies using independent, market-reflective benchmarks. Nigeria's Dangote refinery — the largest oil refinery in Africa — competes directly with imported material; Platts assessments reflecting import parity values provide a key reference for pricing and risk strategy. Physical Market Participants: Importers, fuel marketers, National Oil Companies (NOCs), logistics providers, and storage operators can use assessments to price procurement contracts, manage vessel positioning, and optimize supply chains across West and Southern Africa. Financial Institutions: Banks, hedge funds, and investment firms use assessments for commodity risk management, hedging, and structured financial instrument pricing. Government and Regulators: Monitor assessments to understand market dynamics, inform policy decisions, and track regional supply security. Market Analysts: Energy research firms, consultancies, and in-house analysts use assessments to develop West Africa oil market outlooks, track price trends, and provide market intelligence for trading and investment decisions. Key Use Cases: Physical contract pricing, hedging and risk management, supply chain optimization, arbitrage monitoring, and market intelligence for trading and investment decisions.

Platts West Africa Fuels Price Assessments

PLATTS WEST AFRICA FUELS

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What is the price of fuel in West Africa today?

Access daily Platts price assessments for West African refined products including gasoline, diesel, LPG (butane), and jet fuel. Track real-time market movements across STS Lome, FOB West Africa, DAP Lagos, and CFR South Africa delivery points with transparent, market-based pricing data updated every trading day at 4:30pm London time.

West Africa is a critical and fast-growing hub for global refined product markets, serving as a key supply source for Europe, Africa, and international trading desks. S&P Global Energy Platts delivers independent, transparent price assessments for West African fuels based on verified, real market activity — offering traders, refiners, and market participants the data they need to make informed decisions.

Our assessments cover the full spectrum of West African refined products with daily updates reflecting market value at the close of trading.

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S&P Global Energy methodologies bring consistency and robustness to our price assessments through principles and parameters that guide our market specialists at every stage of the process.

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Why Choose Platts West Africa Fuels Assessments?

Platts West Africa Fuels enables confidence, clarity, and consistency in benchmark pricing — trusted by the market participants who move the world's energy.

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Independence

West Africa Fuels price assessments are published by S&P Global Energy Platts, an independent price reporting agency with no proprietary trading positions and no commercial interest in where the price lands. Our assessments reflect the market — nothing more, nothing less.

Transparency

Every bid, offer and confirmed trade collected during our daily Market on Close process is published in full for all market participants to see. There are no black boxes. Users can scrutinize every data point that feeds into assessment, and our editorial team publishes a daily rationale explaining the price outcome.

Trusted Methodology

With many industry-leading IOSCO benchmarks, Platts methodology is globally trusted and underpin contracts across physical and financial markets. It is publicly available, regularly reviewed, and open to formal feedback from any market participant.

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Nigeria’s Dangote refinery has rapidly transformed the West African fuel landscape, shifting the country from a major importer to a regional supplier and reshaping trade flows across the continent. S&P Global Energy provides comprehensive coverage of West African crude oil and fuel markets, with a focus on the Dangote refinery’s impact on regional and global trade flows.

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