Nigerian crude oil sellers are facing weak demand on the global market, even as the Dangote Petroleum Refinery has raised concerns over limited local feedstock supply.

A Reuters report on Thursday said West African crude sellers are struggling to place cargoes scheduled for late December and January loading, as they face stiff competition from abundant and cheaper alternative supplies.

Traders said that about 20 million barrels of Nigerian crude for December and January loading remained unsold as of Thursday.

This follows the Dangote Refinery’s recent disclosure that it has been sourcing heavily from the United States, Ghana, and other African countries due to insufficient supply from local oil producers.

The report noted that analysts view the unsold Nigerian and Angolan crude as indicative of a broader oil market surplus. This oversupply has spurred selling on international futures markets, driving Brent crude below $60 per barrel—its lowest level since May—earlier this week.

“The overhang of West African cargoes partly reflects the broader global crude supply surplus emerging in Q1,” said Victoria Grabenwoger of analytics firm Kpler.

It was reported that “approximately 20 million barrels of Nigerian oil for December and January loading remained unsold by Thursday, according to two traders, while Angola’s December-January programmes still had as many as five to six cargoes available.”

The report said these unsold cargoes have delayed the start of the trading cycle for February deliveries, despite Angola’s loading schedule and term nominations already being released.

It added that such a large volume of unsold oil is unusual for this time of the month, as the West African trade cycle typically operates about two months in advance. Estimates for the combined overhang from Nigeria and Angola reached as high as 40 million barrels earlier this week.

“Current market softness appears to be partly seasonal and partly due to shifting buying patterns in response to freight costs and alternative supply options,” said OilX analyst Francisco Gutierrez.

The report also noted that Angolan January shipments are running about 20% below their long-term average, as China, the world’s largest commodities buyer, has opted for cheaper or more proximate alternative grades.

Analysts cited in the report said Middle Eastern supplies are displacing medium and heavy West African grades in Asia, as lower official selling prices in January and shorter shipping distances give Middle Eastern crude a competitive advantage.

Meanwhile, two traders noted that India’s oil imports from Russia have remained strong despite tighter Western sanctions, pushing out medium-heavy West African crudes, while light- to medium-density West African grades are facing stiff competition from supplies from Argentina and Brazil.

“Nigeria has also been left to market more oil because of reduced imports by Africa’s largest oil refinery, the 650,000-barrel-per-day Dangote plant, which will in January undergo maintenance,” Kpler’s Grabenwoger said.