Dangote Refinery has dragged the Nigerian government to court over fresh import licenses issued to petrol marketers and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL.
According to Reuters, in a filing on Friday, the
650,000-barrel-per-day refinery asked the Federal High Court in Lagos to set
aside import permits issued or renewed by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream
Petroleum Regulatory Authority, NMDPRA.
Recall that stakeholders have kicked against fresh petrol
import licenses issued to six petroleum marketers despite Dangote Refinery
having about 79 percent capacity to meet in-country fuel supply demand.
In an industrial data released by NMDPRA, the authority
stated that in April 2026, Dangote Refinery supplied 79 percent of the
country’s petrol consumption.
However, NMDPRA, ignoring industrial expert advice, had
insisted on issuing fresh licenses.
In reaction, Dangote Petroleum Refinery has filed a new
lawsuit against the Federal Government in a bid to overturn fuel import
licenses issued to marketers and the NNPC.
It accused the Nigerian government of policy somersault
despite its projection of a Nigerian-first policy.
Determined to sustain the gains of domestic refining,
Dangote Refinery had sought to nullify import permits issued to the NNPCL and
several traders.
Dangote said in the filing that the licenses issued in May
undermine its operations and contravene the law, which it argues allows imports
only when domestic supply falls short.
Recall that Dangote Refinery ended its earlier lawsuit
against importers in 2025 upon Federal Government intervention.
While petrol importers sell their petrol at around N1,285
and N1,295 per liter, Dangote Refinery dispenses the product cheaper at N1,200
per liter.
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