President Bola Tinubu has directed the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited to sell crude oil to Dangote Petroleum Refinery and other refineries in naira.
The Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to the President, Bayo Onanuga disclosed that the proposal was adopted by the Federal Executive Council (FEC).
“To ensure the stability of the pump price of refined fuel and the dollar-Naira exchange rate, the Federal Executive Council today adopted a proposal by President Tinubu to sell crude to Dangote Refinery and other upcoming refineries in Naira,” Onanuga said.
“Dangote Refinery at the moment requires 15 cargoes of crude, at a cost of $13.5 billion yearly. NNPC has committed to supply four.
“But the FEC has approved that the 450,000 barrels meant for domestic consumption be offered in Naira to Nigerian refineries, using the Dangote refinery as pilot. The exchange rate will be fixed for the duration of this transaction.”
Onanuga said the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) and other settlement banks in Nigeria will facilitate the trade between Dangote and NNPC.
The game changing intervention will eliminate the need for international letter of credit, further saving the country of dollar payments,” the spokesperson said.
The decision followed the dispute between Dangote refinery, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).
