Dangote Refinery has denied claims made by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) that it sold petrol at ₦898 per litre. The clarification came after NNPCL’s spokesperson, Olufemi Soneye, stated on Sunday that petrol had been purchased at that price during the first batch of deliveries from the Dangote Refinery.
In a statement released by Anthony Chiejina, the Group Chief Branding and Communications Officer for Dangote, the company explained that the petrol was sold in U.S. dollars, not in naira. The statement emphasized that this transaction provided significant cost savings compared to Nigeria’s current reliance on imported fuel.
“Our attention has been drawn to misleading reports suggesting we sold petrol at ₦898 per litre to the NNPCL. This is incorrect. The products were sold in dollars, in line with global pricing structures for crude oil and refined products,” Chiejina said.
The refinery urged Nigerians to await a formal pricing announcement, which is expected on October 1, 2024, by a technical committee appointed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The committee will establish a pricing framework for Naira-based crude oil sales to local refineries.
This development comes after NNPCL dispatched over 300 trucks to the Dangote Refinery’s Ibeju-Lekki facility on Saturday, September 14, 2024, to commence fuel distribution. Soneye had earlier mentioned that this move was part of an effort to tackle fuel shortages across Nigeria.
While NNPCL will be the sole distributor of petrol from the Dangote Refinery, other marketers are expected to source fuel from the national oil company. This arrangement is intended to stabilize the domestic fuel market and end long-standing shortages.
Despite the discrepancy in pricing claims, Dangote Refinery reassured the public of its commitment to ensuring a steady supply of high-quality fuel across all regions of Nigeria.
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