- Dangote Refinery temporarily halted petrol supply in naira
- It said the decision is necessary to avoid a mismatch between sales proceeds and crude oil purchase obligations
- The refinery assured that it would resume selling petroleum products in naira as soon as it receives naira-denominated cargoes from the NNPCL
Dangote Refinery has announced the temporary halt of the supply of petroleum products in naira.
In a statement by the refinery shared on its official X page on Wednesday, March 19, the Dangote Group said the decision is to avoid a mismatch between sales proceeds and crude oil purchase obligations, which are currently denominated in US dollars.
“Dear valued customers, we wish to inform you that Dangote Petroleum Refinery has temporarily halted the sale of petroleum products in naira.
“This decision is necessary to avoid a mismatch between our sales proceeds and our crude oil purchase obligations, which are currently denominated in US dollars.
“To date, our sales of petroleum products in naira have exceeded the value of naira-denominated crude we have received.
“As a result, we must temporarily adjust our sales currency to align with our crude procurement currency,” the statement read.
Refinery to resume sale on receipt of naira-denominated cargoes from NNPCL
The statement also debunked reports that the refinery stopped loading due to a ticketing fraud incident, saying it is a malicious falsehood.
The refinery also assured it would resume selling petroleum products in naira as soon as it receives naira-denominated cargoes from the NNPCL.
It stated, “Our attention has been drawn to reports on the internet claiming that we are stopping loading due to an incident of ticketing fraud.
“This is a malicious falsehood. Our systems are robust and we have had no fraud issues.
“We remain committed to serving the Nigerian market efficiently and sustainably.
“As soon as we receive an allocation of naira-denominated crude cargoes from NNPC we will promptly resume petroleum product sales in naira.”
Suspension amid NNPCL’s delay of crude-for-naira sale
The decision of Dangote Refinery to stop the sale of petroleum products in naira follows reports that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) might have stopped the sale of crude in naira to the Dangote Refinery.
The sale of crude oil and refined petroleum products in naira officially commenced on October 1, 2024, following the Federal Executive Council’s (FEC) approval of a proposal by President Bola Tinubu directing the NNPC to sell crude oil to Dangote Refinery and other refineries in the local currency.
The naira-for-crude deal was designed to supply domestic refineries with crude oil in exchange for refined petroleum products.
However, the implementation of the deal was said to have been delayed by NNPCL, leaving Dangote Refinery to rely on dollar-denominated crude oil purchases.
The NNPCL said there were ongoing negotiations for a new naira-for-crude deal with the refinery, as the current agreement will expire at the end of March.
Chairman of the naira-for-crude policy technical sub-committee, Zaach Adedeji, also reassured that the naira-based crude oil supply arrangement with local refineries has not been discontinued.
Nigeria to sell crude oil in naira to boost local refineries, economy
Meanwhile, TheRadar earlier reported that the Federal Government said the introduction of the sale of crude oil in naira was a strategic step towards enhancing the operational efficiency of local refineries, as well as reducing foreign exchange risks and transaction costs.
This initiative, which is part of broader energy sector reforms, was disclosed by President Bola Tinubu during the opening of the eighth edition of the Nigeria International Energy Summit (NIES) in Abuja on Tuesday.
