By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Dangote Refinery and other local refiners in Nigeria will begin to buy crude oil from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited on October 1, 2024.
This information was disclosed by the federal government after a meeting with the Implementation Committee on the Naira crude oil sale on Monday in Abuja.
Recall that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) a few weeks ago directed the NNPC to sell crude oil to Dangote Refinery and other modular refineries in Naira instead of Dollar.
They were allotted 450,000 barrels per day, but the NNPC said it had no crude oil to supply the domestic refiners because of its current deals with international oil companies (IOCs).
This has prevented the refinery owned by Africa’s richest man, Mr Aliko Dangote, from producing and supplying premium motor spirit (PMS), otherwise known as petrol, to the local market.
Yesterday, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, held a meeting with the panel set up to ensure the directive is implemented.
“The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, today (Monday) led the Implementation Committee meeting on the transition to crude oil sales in Naira.
“The meeting reviewed progress on key initiatives, including the upcoming commencement of naira payments for crude oil sales to the Dangote Refinery starting October 1, 2024,” a post on the official X (formerly Twitter) page of the finance ministry said.
Mr Edun also emphasised the need for transparency, directing the Technical Sub-Committee to finalise details and prepare a report for President Bola Tinub.
It was gathered that at the meeting, key roles were outlined for stakeholders, including the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, and the African Export-Import Bank, to ensure smooth implementation.