LIVE UPDATES
The Dangote Refinery has denied selling petrol to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) at N898 per litre, describing the claim as "misleading and mischievous".
The refinery spokesman stated that the NNPCL's statement is aimed at undermining the milestone achievement towards addressing energy insufficiency and insecurity in the country.
The spokesman urged Nigerians to disregard the "malicious statement" and await a formal announcement on the pricing, which will commence on October 1, 2024, considering that the current stock of crude was procured in dollars.
"The products were sold to NNPCL in dollars, resulting in significant savings compared to their current import costs. This will ensure the availability of petrol in every local government area, even in remote locations," the oil firm stated.
The NNPCL started loading the first batch of petrol from the Dangote Refinery on Sunday.
Last December, Dangote, Africa's leading industrialist, commenced operations at his $20bn facility located in Lagos with a capacity of 350,000 barrels per day.
The refinery, which faced regulatory challenges initially, aims to reach its full capacity of 650,000 barrels per day by the end of the year.
The refinery has commenced the supply of diesel, aviation fuel, and now petrol to marketers across the country.
Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation, faces energy challenges, with all its state-owned refineries being non-operational.
The country heavily relies on imported refined petroleum products, with the state-run NNPC being the major importer of these essential commodities.
Fuel queues are commonplace in the country, and the prices of petrol have tripled since the removal of the subsidy in May 2023, from around ₦200/litre to about ₦1000/litre, exacerbating the difficulties faced by citizens who power their vehicles and generators with petrol, due to the long-standing unreliable electricity supply.
