There are growing concerns regarding the anticipated supply of crude oil in naira from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) to the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, which was scheduled to commence on October 1, 2024.
As of October 3, there has been no indication that this supply has begun.
Efforts to obtain updates from officials at the Dangote refinery and various government bodies, including the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission and the Federal Ministry of Finance, have been met with silence.
This lack of communication follows a report which indicated that a Technical Sub-Committee had confirmed the start date for crude oil supply in naira.
On September 13, 2024, it was announced that President Bola Tinubu's administration had approved the sale of crude oil in local currency to support domestic refineries. The Technical Sub-Committee had stated that NNPC would supply approximately 385,000 barrels per day to the Dangote refinery, with payments made in naira.
Zacch Adedeji, who chairs the Technical Sub-Committee and also leads the Federal Inland Revenue Service, had previously assured that plans were in motion to ensure the agreement's implementation for the benefit of Nigerians.
However, sources from three domestic refineries have expressed uncertainty about whether the deal has commenced.
When contacted for clarification, NNPC officials redirected inquiries to the Ministry of Finance, which has also not provided responses.
A senior official from a domestic refinery indicated that refiners, including Dangote, are still waiting for the Federal Government to initiate the crude supply in naira.
Despite earlier assurances from government representatives that efforts are underway to finalize details of this deal, there remains a notable absence of formal communication regarding its status.
One operator noted that while they were told the technical committee was working on an agreement, no such communication had yet been received.
