The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPCL) has confirmed that it will cut imports of premium motor spirit, commonly known as gasoline, once the Dangote refinery begins producing refined petroleum products in late July or early August.
NNPCL is currently the sole gasoline importer in Nigeria, a role the company has held for several years. Other oil marketers stopped importing gasoline because the US dollar was not available at the official rate.
NNPCL also owned a 20% interest in the Dangote Refinery. The 650,000 bbl/d crude oil processing refinery was completed on May 22, 2023 by former President Muhammadu Buhari, who said the facility was a milestone. Also, Aliko Dangote, Founder and President of Dangote Group, said at the opening ceremony that the plant will eliminate the flow of toxic low-grade petroleum products to Nigeria, and that the refinery will meet 100 percent of Nigeria’s fuel demand. It added that it will supply
Dangote also said the refinery will start supplying refined products to the Nigerian market from late July or early August this year.
When our correspondent contacted him to ask what would happen to the NNPCL fuel import program once the Dangote refinery began selling its products in August, National Oil Company spokesman Galbadine Muhammad said: , replied that it would change.
“NNPC Limited imports products from outside Nigeria when needed, but we do not intend to do so. would have wanted to provide a “Given the situation surrounding refineries, we cannot allow country closures, so we have to buy and sell wherever we can. If Dangote products are available, shouldn’t we buy from Dangote?” ?
“There is absolutely no reason. That is why we are interested in the Dangote Refinery. We are co-owners, shouldn’t we do business with our partners rather than do it with other people?”
Muhammad explained that the NNPCL would be supplying crude oil to the Dangote Refinery based on business agreement between both parties, and that this would be in accordance with the international price of crude.
“NNPC owns 20 per cent of that asset and we have an agreement with Dangote that we will supply the refinery with crude. So as soon as Dangote begins to request for crude to pay for it, NNPC is prepared to supply the crude as a business transaction.
“We have been selling crude to different parts of the world for decades, and it is not whether we will sell it to Dangote, for why won’t we sell to Dangote when we are selling to other refineries and countries?”
NNPCL Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari, recently stated that the supply of 300,000 barrels of crude oil per day by the national oil firm to the Dangote Refinery would start once the facility commenced operations.
Marketers demand pricing template
Meanwhile, oil marketers said the cost of refined petroleum products to be produced by the Dangote Refinery would not be known at the moment until the refinery released its pricing template.
They expressed hope that the refinery would improve the petroleum products’ supply situation in Nigeria, but noted that the cost of white products would only be determined by the pricing template of the facility.
The Secretary, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Abuja-Suleja, Mohammed Shuaibu, said, “By the time it starts producing, we would see how implementation is going to be and his template. You can’t say much about a refinery until it’s launched. So let’s see what the production looks like and what it looks like from a pricing template perspective. ”
Also on the subject, Billy Gillis-Harry, president of the Nigerian Petroleum Products Retail Store Owners Association, said the new refinery pricing proposal would give operators an indication of how much refined petroleum products from the mill will cost. said it would.
