Marketers Take Action Against Dangote In Court, Insist On Petrol Import

In a joint counter-affidavit (case number FHC/ABJ/CS/1324/2024) dated November 5, 2024, responding to Dangote Refinery’s originating summons, the marketers argued that granting the refinery’s application would significantly harm Nigeria’s oil sector.

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They contended that the refinery’s push to monopolize the sector poses a serious threat to the industry.

Read Also: Why Any Imported Petrol Cheaper Than Ours Is Substandard – Dangote Refinery

Dangote Refinery, in its initial filing dated September 6, 2024, had sued the Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPC), along with several marketers—AYM Shafa, A. A. Rano, T. Time Petroleum Limited, 2015 Petroleum Limited, and Matrix Petroleum Services Limited, listed as the 1st to 7th defendants.

The refinery is asking the court to rule that the NMDPRA violated Sections 317(8) and (9) of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) by issuing petroleum import licenses without any petroleum product shortfall to justify them. It also claimed that NMDPRA failed in its duty to support local refineries, including Dangote Refinery.

In response, Shafa, A. A. Rano, and Matrix Petroleum argued that Dangote Refinery does not produce enough petroleum products to meet Nigeria’s daily needs.

They noted that the refinery had not provided any evidence to the contrary in court. Furthermore, they asserted that they fully meet the legal qualifications under Section 317(9) of the PIA to receive import licenses from NMDPRA and had duly complied with all legal requirements to obtain these licenses.

They argued that granting Dangote Refinery a monopoly in Nigeria’s petroleum industry, as sought in the current legal case, would undermine competitive pricing for petroleum products nationwide. Such a move, they warned, would further weaken Nigeria’s already fragile economy.

The marketers emphasized that it would impose severe hardship on Nigerians, creating conditions ripe for instability in the country.

They cautioned that if Nigeria places all its energy resources in a single source by halting petroleum imports and allowing Dangote Refinery to be the exclusive producer and supplier, with the freedom to set its own prices, fuel costs will continue to soar, jeopardizing the country’s energy security.

Additionally, they pointed out that in the event of a breakdown at the refinery, the monopoly would leave Nigeria vulnerable to a severe energy crisis.