By Abubakar Yunusa
A group of concerned Nigerian citizens has called on the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited to prioritise crude oil supply to local refineries over foreign partners.
The group, at a press conference in Abuja on Tuesday, expressed concern over reports that the NNPC plans to reduce its crude oil supply to the Dangote refinery from 300,000 barrels per day.
Obinna Francis, national coordinator of the group, said the move is part of a larger plan to monopolise the oil sector and frustrate local investors.
“Citizens are no longer surprised that the NNPCL has been insisting that the Warri and Port Harcourt refineries are operating at between 60 to 70 percent operational capacity,” Francis said.
“It is clear now that the game from the beginning was to pave the way and create an angle of plausible engagement aimed at reducing the quota of crude that is expected to go to the Dangote refinery.
“We argued that the coming upstream of the Warri and Port Harcourt refineries is not expected to cut down allocation to local refineries.
“The naira for the crude agreement was purely an intervention at the time to boost local production and then provide some cushion from the volatility of the foreign exchange market. It was not so much about the crude but the FX.
“If the Warri and Port Harcourt refineries are coming on stream, it is expected that it will make the price of petrol affordable for Nigerians and not become a stumbling block and a basis for adjustments of crude.
“Citizens will also want to inform the world that while the Dangote refinery is operating at no cost to the taxpayer, the NNPCL is embarking on Project Leopard. The operation will enable the company to raise $2 billion in total exchange for crude oil, thereby pushing the volume of loans for crude to $8 billion within four years, with consequential adversity and growing debts for the nation.
“A few months ago, Oando loaned the NNPC $500 million as part of another syndicated loan operation called Project Gazelle.
“Swiss group Gunvor International and Nigeria’s Sahara Energy Resources also took part in the $3.175 billion operation, which was arranged by Afreximbank.
“These deals have continued despite complaints from domestic refineries that the national oil firm is not meeting its quota. The country’s average daily production stood at 1.8 million barrels per day as of November 2024.”
