By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The Dangote Group has disclosed that one of its subsidiaries, the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals, would withdraw its suit against the Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) for issuing import licences to Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, Matrix Petroleum Services Limited, A. A. Rano Limited, AYM Shafa Limited, T. Time Petroleum Limited, and 2015 Petroleum Limited.
On Monday, reports went viral that Dangote Refinery was in court to stop the federal government from allowing oil marketers to bring petroleum products into the country, making the company and other local refiners the sole source of petrol supply.
The refinery, in a suit filed at the Federal High Court in Abuja with the number FHC/ABJ/CS/1324/2024, asked the court to cancel the licences issued by the agency to the energy firms to import refined products like the Automotive Gas Oil and Jet-A1 (aviation fuel) into the country when it was already producing the product in abundance.
According to the Dangote Refinery, which cost about $20 billion to set up in the Lekki area of Lagos State, the issuance of the licences violates sections of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) aimed to promote local producers.
The plaintiff argued that, “Its business activities and investments are being jeopardised and may get worse by the day unless the court intervenes.”
It also said in the document filed to the court that, “The 1st defendant (NMDPRA) is in violation of Sections 317(8) and (9) of the Petroleum Industry Act by issuing licences for the importation of petroleum products, as such licences are to be issued only in circumstances where there is a petroleum product shortfall.”
In addition, Dangote Refinery noted that the agency violated “its statutory role and responsibility under the PIA towards encouraging local refineries such as the plaintiff when it issued licences to other companies to import petroleum products into Nigeria where there is no shortfall in local production.”
But in a statement yesterday night, Dangote Group, through its Chief Branding and Communications Officer, Mr Anthony Chiejina, the issue is being resolved out of the court.
“Currently, the parties are in discussion since President Bola Tinubu’s directive on Crude Oil and Refined products sales in the Naira Initiative, which was approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC).
“We have made tremendous progress in that regard and events have overtaken this development.
“No party has been served with court processes and there is no intention of doing so. We have agreed to put a halt to the proceedings.
“It is important to stress that no orders have been made and there are no adverse effects on any party. We understand that once the matter comes up in January 2025, we would be in a position to formally withdraw the matter in court,” the statement made available to Business Post said.