Dangote Refinery Seeks Annulment of Import Licenses Granted to NNPCL

Dangote Refinery has petitioned the Federal High Court in Abuja to annul the import licenses granted to the NNPCL, Matrix Petroleum Services Limited, A. A. Rano, “despite the production of AGO and Jet-A1 that exceeds the current daily consumption of petroleum products in Nigeria by the Dangote Refinery.”

In case number FHC/ABJ/CS/1324/2024, Dangote Refinery is pursuing N100 billion in damages from the NMDPRA. They allege that the NMDPRA has been improperly granting import licenses to NNPCL, Matrix Energy, and other firms for the importation of petroleum products, including AGO and Jet Fuel, into Nigeria.

The defendants involved in this case include NMDPRA, NNPCL, Aym Shafa Limited, A. A. Rano Limited, T. Time Petroleum Limited, 2015 Petroleum Limited, and Matrix Petroleum Services Limited.

The Dangote attorney, Ogwu James Onoja, SAN, requested the court to determine that the NMDPRA is purportedly contravening Sections 317(8) and (9) of the Petroleum Industry Act by granting licenses for the importation of petroleum products.

He emphasized that these licenses ought to be granted solely in situations where there is a shortage of petroleum products.

He also called on the court to recognize that NMDPRA is failing to fulfill its mandated duties under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) by not supporting local refineries like Dangote Refinery.

Dangote Refinery, expressed concerns that the import licenses issued to other companies by NMDPRA for the importation of AGO and Jet-A1 are severely hindering the plaintiff’s operations, in which it has invested substantial financial resources amounting to billions of US dollars.

He observed that the products of the plaintiff have been significantly overlooked as a result of the purported actions taken by NMDPRA.

Dangote said that NMDPRA has threatened to enforce a 0.5% levy on the plaintiff concerning wholesalers and off-takers, along with another 0.5% levy on wholesale transactions directed to the Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund (MDGIF), as stated in a letter dated June 10, 2024. This course of action contradicts statutory provisions that regulate such levies.