- The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) renewed its call for the Federal Government to relinquish majority control of state-owned refineries, proposing a 51% equity sale to core investors
- Speaking on Politics Today on Channels Television, Festus Osifo said the union had long advocated the Nigeria LNG Limited model, where international oil majors like ENI, TotalEnergies and Shell collectively held 51% equity
- Osifo backed reforms at Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and noted its landmark visit to the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, while insisting government should retain a minority stake to safeguard national energy security
The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has renewed its call for the Federal Government to relinquish majority control of the nation’s state-owned refineries, urging the adoption of the successful Nigeria LNG model by selling at least 51 per cent equity to core investors.
Speaking on Politics Today on Channels Television, the National President of PENGASSAN and the Trade Union Congress, Festus Osifo, reiterated the union’s long-standing position that partial privatisation offers the most viable path to restoring efficiency and profitability in the refining sector.
Osifo stated that for over two decades, PENGASSAN has consistently advocated a restructuring model similar to that of Nigeria LNG Limited, in which the government retains a minority stake while core industry players hold majority ownership. Under the NLNG arrangement, international oil majors including ENI, TotalEnergies and Shell collectively control 51 per cent equity, a structure widely regarded as commercially successful.
“We have always advocated in PENGASSAN that the government should take a minority stake in the refinery and sell the majority stake — at least 51 per cent — to investors who are genuine refiners,” Osifo said. He stressed that such investors must possess technical and operational expertise, rather than being mere portfolio investors or politically connected individuals.
According to the union, divesting majority shares to experienced private refiners would depoliticise management, attract fresh capital investment and enhance operational efficiency. Osifo argued that removing political interference would enable sound commercial decision-making, ultimately transforming the refineries into profitable enterprises.
While expressing support for the current reform direction of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Osifo maintained that total privatisation would not be advisable. He insisted that the Federal Government should retain a minority holding to safeguard national energy security.
His remarks come amid intensified debate over the future of Nigeria’s ageing and largely non-operational refineries, particularly following the commercialisation of NNPCL. The discussion has also been shaped by recent developments in the private sector.
At the weekend, NNPCL’s Group Chief Executive Officer, Bayo Ojulari, paid a landmark visit to the 650,000 barrels-per-day Dangote Petroleum Refinery — Africa’s largest single-train refinery — praising it as a symbol of technological ambition and national pride. The visit marked the first official tour of the facility by the senior leadership of the state oil firm, which currently holds a seven per cent equity stake in the privately owned refinery.
PENGASSAN’s latest intervention signals organised labour’s conditional backing for majority private participation in Nigeria’s refining industry, provided that the state retains sufficient influence to protect strategic national interests while allowing commercial discipline to prevail.