Nigeria’s oil export in May is expected to increase significantly, as the country plans to load about 69.3 million barrels in 75 oil cargoes, according to the latest loading plans.

The loading programme reported by Bloomberg, showed a total of 75 cargoes of 18 main grades, amounting to 69.3 million barrels or 2.24 million barrels a day, the highest since July last year.

The nation plans to export five 950,000-barrel cargoes of the new Usan grade in May, up from three for next month, according to the plan. Production at the field, which has the capacity to pump 180,000 barrels a day, started in late February, according to Total SA (FP), the operator of the project.

Nigeria will also ship 12 cargoes of Qua Iboe, eight Agbami, seven Forcados, five Bonny Light, five Akpo, five Bonga, four Erha, four Brass River, four Escravos, three Amenam, three Yoho, two EA, two Antan, two Okwori, two Okono, one Pennington and one Abo, according to the schedule. Shipments are typically of 950,000 to 1 million barrels each.

Loading programmes are monthly schedules of crude shipments compiled by field operators to allow buyers and sellers to plan their supply and trading activities. Also, there are indications that Nigeria may stand to be among the beneficiaries of circumstances in the league of oil exporting countries, as its crude supply to Spain rose sharply in January, due to a supply drop from Iran, just as the European Union imposed sanctions on the nation.

The latest monthly bulletin, strategic hydrocarbons reserve board CORES estimated Spain had imported 279,000 tonnes of crude oil from Iran, a drop of 31 per cent from December. Nigeria’s export to the country rose by 32.7 per cent, as it exported 836,000 tonnes of crude in the period as against 630,000 tonnes in December.

As a proportion of total imports, Iranian crude fell to six per cent in January from 9.5 per cent in December, which compares with around 14 per cent in previous months.

Spain, which needs to import virtually all of its crude, ramped up imports in January from Nigeria, Iraq and Libya, where production has been returning to normal.

Meanwhile, the European Union imposed sanctions on Iran on January 23 over its nuclear programme, although importers have until July 1 to execute previously signed contracts.