By Bassey Udo
The leadership of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) should be probed and prosecuted for alleged crime of economic sabotage, the President and Chief Executive of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, has said.
Dangote, who made the allegations during a press briefing on the State of operations the Dangote Petroleum Refinery on Sunday, specifically called for the investigation and prosecution of the Authority Chief Executive, Farouk Ahmed, for engaging in activities that undermine efforts to achieve domestic refining in Nigeria, including his continued reckless issuance of import licences to marketers for the importation of petroleum products.
Expressing serious concern over the current state of the downstream sector of the petroleum industry, Dangote accused Engineer Ahmed and the NMDPRA of colluding with international oil traders and importers to frustrate local refining in Nigeria, saying Nigeria’s continued reliance on imported petroleum products was harming local production and discouraging investment in domestic refining.
He disclosed that licences approved by Ahmed have already been issued by the NMDPRA for the importation of approximately 7.5 billion litres of premium motor spirit (PMS) for the first quarter of 2026, despite the availability of adequate stock of products from the domestic refineries.
The current policy environment where NMDPRA has persistently and recklessly issue import permits to marketers for the importation of petroleum products has not only weakened the capacity of the downstream sector of the petroleum industry, but left modular refineries already struggling and on the brink of extinction.
“I am not calling for his (Ahmed’s) removal, but for a proper investigation of these allegations. He should be made to account for his actions, to ensure he has not compromised his position to the detriment of Nigerians. What is happening amounts to economic sabotage,” Dangote said.
Also, he alleged that domestic refiners are forced to buy Nigerian crude oil at premiums of up to four dollars per barrel from the trading arms of international oil companies, placing them at a disadvantage with their competitors.
He called on the government to ensure crude oil taxes were assessed based on actual transaction values, warning that the current system allowed under-declaration and revenue losses.
The Dangote Group chairman assured Nigerians that the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) would fall further, stating that petrol would sell at no more than N740 per litre from Tuesday, beginning in Lagos, due to his refinery’s reduction of the gantry price to N699 per litre. He said MRS filling stations would be the first to reflect the new pricing.
He alleged the presence of formidable entrenched interests in the downstream petroleum sector motivated by profit from fuel imports at the expense of national development.
“There are powerful interests in the downstream sector of the oil industry. It is troubling that African countries continue to import refined products, despite long-standing calls for value addition and domestic refining. The volume of imports being allowed into the country is unethical and does a disservice to Nigeria,” he added.
Dangote stressed the need for a clear separation between regulatory oversight and commercial interests, warning that allowing traders to influence regulation would undermine the integrity of the sector.
“The downstream sector must not be destroyed by personal interests. A trader should never be allowed to function as a regulator. Forty-seven licences have been issued for the importation of petroleum products, yet no new refineries are being built, because the environment is not conducive,” he said.
Dangote, who said he would not relent in the effort to ensure Nigerians enjoyed the benefits of domestic refining, he maintained that consumers would ultimately benefit from local refining, even as fuel importers continue to incur losses.
He said Dangote Refinery was working at all times to ensure that recent reductions in the depot price were fully reflected at the retail pump level.
As part of efforts to make consumers enjoy the full impact of the price reduction, he announced that from Tuesday partner retail outlets like MRS filling stations would begin selling PMS at prices not exceeding N740 per litre, starting in Lagos.
The reduction in retail price of petrol, he said, followed the refinery’s reduction of its minimum purchase requirement from two million litres to 500,000 litres to enable more marketers, including members of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), to participate.
“So if you come to the refinery today, you will get PMS at N699 per litre,” he said.
Despite frustration and sabotage of its operations, Dangote said the refinery would continue to deploy its Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) trucks in the coming days, while expressing its preparedness to procure additional units beyond the initial 4,000 required to sustain affordable pricing nationwide.
On complaints from oil importers that the recent price reduction would result in losses, Dangote said the refinery was established primarily for the benefit of Nigerians, adding that anyone who chooses to continue importation of petroleum products despite the availability of locally refined products should be prepared to face the consequences.
On the quality differences between petroleum products from Dangote Refinery and imported products, he said while former are supplied through MRS and other partner offtakers directly from the refinery, the latter were blended products imported from overseas markets.
“Nigerians have a choice to buy better quality fuel at a more affordable price or blended PMS at a higher rate. Importers can continue to lose, so long as Nigerians benefit,” he added.
The operation of Dangote refinery, he noted, was driven more by legacy than profit, adding that he could have chosen to invest the $20 billion invested in financing the construction of the refinery elsewhere if financial gains were his sole objective.
On the future of the refinery, he announced plans to list the share of the refinery on the Nigerian Exchange to allow Nigerians to own shares in the facility, adding that discussions were ongoing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to enable Nigerians to purchase shares in Naira, while receiving dividends in dollars.
“We want every living Nigerian to have the opportunity to benefit, no matter how small their holding. If the market takes 55 percent and I retain 45 percent, I am satisfied,” he said.
Dangote accused the NMDPRA of consistently misrepresenting the refinery’s capacity by publishing offtake figures, rather than actual production levels, saying the refinery has the capacity to meet local demand, with sufficient refined products in stock.
“To keep prices high, NMDPRA deliberately encourages imports,” he said, adding that attempts were being made to push the refinery into exporting products only for them to be re-imported into Nigeria at higher prices.
Apart from crude oil supplies from Ghana and other countries, he said the refinery imports an average of 100 million barrels of crude oil annually from the United States, a figure expected to rise to 200 million barrels following expansion, due to insufficient domestic crude oil supply from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Ltd. Also, the refinery exports jet fuel and gasoline to the United States.
When contacted on Monday, the spokesperson of NMDPRA, George Ene-Ita, said neither he nor the Authority would join issues over the personal attacks by Dangote on the person of Farouk Ahmed.
However, on allegations of continued issuance of import licenses to marketers, Mr Ene-Ita said while awaiting the outcome of the probe of the activities of the NMDPRA called by Dangote, the Authority would not shirk from its responsibility to do everything possible to ensure the country’s energy security, by bridging the gap in the supply of petroleum products as long as it exists between local supply and national consumption levels
