- Dangote Refinery has clarified that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) in response to recent media reports, that lifting petrol from its facility has not yet commenced.
- This clarification from Dangote Refinery aims to address concerns and correct public misconceptions following the erroneous report.
- As the public continues to face fuel shortages and high prices, accurate information and timely updates from both the refinery and NNPC are essential.
Dangote Refinery has clarified that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has not yet commenced lifting petrol from its facility in response to recent media reports.
The statement follows a headline in a national daily which suggested that NNPC had begun distributing refined petrol from Dangote's refinery.
Anthony Chiejina, the Chief Branding and Communications Officer of the Dangote Group, issued a statement on the company's official page via X, on Thursday, September 5, addressing the misleading report. The statement read:
“Our attention has been drawn to a headline 'NNPC lifts Dangote Petrol, sells at N897 per litre' published in the BusinessDay Newspapers of Wednesday, 4 September 2024.
“We would like to state that NNPC has not commenced lifting of refined Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, from our Dangote Petroleum Refinery.
“Therefore, the issue of fixing the price of petrol lifted from our refinery does not arise, as we are yet to finalize our contract with NNPC.
“The PMS market is strictly regulated, which is known to all oil marketers and stakeholders in the sector, hence we cannot determine, fix, or influence the product price, which falls under the purview of relevant government authorities.
“We urge the public to disregard the headline as it is misleading and does not represent the true position in this matter. We are guaranteeing Nigerians of exceptionally high standards in our operations and are committed to transparency and collaboration with relevant authorities,” the statement added.
This clarification from Dangote Refinery aims to address concerns and correct public misconceptions following the erroneous report. The refinery, which has been touted as a key player in alleviating Nigeria’s fuel supply issues, emphasised that contractual agreements and regulatory frameworks are still pending.
The NNPC, responsible for fuel distribution across Nigeria, has not yet responded to the clarification or provided details on when or if they plan to start lifting petrol from the Dangote facility.
Dangote refinery starts petrol production, raises hope of addressing Nigeria's fuel crises
Meanwhile, TheRadar earlier reported that Dangote Refinery Plc had started petrol production, representing Nigeria’s first petrol production in 28 years.
This was confirmed by Devakumar Edwin, the vice president at Dangote Industries Limited on Monday, September 2 at the Berekete family show. Edwin added that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), the importer of petrol in Nigeria, would be the sole buyer of the refinery's product.
