The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has given instructions to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited to sell crude oil to Dangote Refinery and other local refineries using the Nigerian currency, naira, instead of the US dollar.
This directive was revealed by Zack Adedeji, the head of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), following a FEC meeting led by President Bola Tinubu in Abuja on Monday. Adedeji explained that this move aims to lessen the pressure on Nigeria’s foreign reserves and help stabilize the prices of petrol, diesel, and other petroleum products in the country.
The FEC has mandated that the state-owned NNPC Limited start implementing this directive immediately to enhance local production of refined petroleum products in Nigeria. Furthermore, the government has ordered that refined products from Dangote Refinery be sold to oil marketers and distributors in naira instead of US dollars.
Aliko Dangote, the prominent businessman who owns Dangote Refinery, previously accused authorities and international oil companies of hindering the supply of crude oil to his $20 billion facility located at the Lekki Free Trade Zone near Lagos. There were also concerns raised by regulatory authorities about the quality of petroleum products produced at Dangote Refinery. However, Dangote assured that the products from his refinery are of higher quality than those imported by marketers.
Dangote’s massive refinery in Lagos began operations last December with a capacity of 350,000 barrels per day, aiming to reach its full capacity of 650,000 barrels per day by the end of the year. The refinery has already started supplying diesel and aviation fuel to marketers within the country, with petrol supply expected to begin in August, despite facing some regulatory challenges.
