The Crude Oil Refinery Owners Association of Nigeria has cautioned the Nigerian (CORAN) government over granting import licences to petroleum marketers to bring refined products into the country.
The refiners’ assertion came amid controversy between the Dangote Refinery and oil marketers.
TimesNow.com.ng reported that members of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) disclosed that they would import petrol to sell below the N990 per litre offered by the Dangote Refinery, stating the association was waiting for the approval of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
Also, the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) was processing its import license with NMPRA, saying it might be cheaper than buying from the Lekki-based refinery.
Punch reported that CORAN’s publicity secretary, Eche Idoko, expressed concern that marketers still insist on importing substandard petrol into Nigeria.
Idoko disclosed that some international traders want to use the Nigerian market as a dumping ground for off-spec petroleum products, which were rejected in Europe.
He asked the NMDPRA to stop issuing import licenses to those importing products with enough supplies in Nigeria.
He said the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) does not stop the regulator from issuing imports but allows for backward integration.
According to him, refiners in Nigeria are deeply troubled that many international traders still have licenses to import fuel into Nigeria.
Idoko said the development is dangerous to the petroleum refining segment and will negatively impact the country’s economic recovery and game plan.
He disclosed that traders use local traders as tools to engage in trade wars because they have vested interests in the Nigerian market but have refused to invest in the petroleum sector.
The CORAN scribe said stopping fuel import is for the country.
The development comes as three oil marketers have asked an Abuja High Court to stop Dangote from taking over the oil industry in Nigeria, saying it will spell doom for the industry.
The marketers are AYM Shafa Limited, A.A. Rano Limited, and Matrix Petroleum Services Limited. They maintained that allowing the mega refinery to control the oil sector in Nigeria would not end well for the country.
The Dangote Group has yet to respond to inquiries about the suit.
However, the oil marketers filed the suit in reply to challenge the competence of the suit the refinery filed to annul the licenses they secured to import petroleum products into Nigeria.
The marketers’ other partners in the suit include the Nigerian Mindstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC).
TimesNow.com.ng earlier reported that Nigeria’s prominent oil marketers have benefited from the country’s removal of petroleum product subsidies.
The change has allowed marketers to operate in a more market-driven environment, leading to more financial gains.
