Three oil marketing firms—AYM Shafa Limited, A. A. Rano Limited, and Matrix Petroleum Services Limited—have asked the Federal High Court in Abuja to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals.
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.
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.
“The import licences lawfully and validly issued to the defendants did not in any way whatsoever, cripple the plaintiff’s business or its refinery.
“The import licenses issued to the defendants by the 1st defendant are in line with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act, 2018, and other relevant laws,” they contended.
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.
“That in the event of any breakdown in or obstruction to the production chain of the plaintiff which stops it from producing Nigeria will be thrown into energy crises because it does not have the reserves that would last it for at least 30 days that it would need to order, pay for, freight and import refined products into tanks in Nigeria.
“That amidst the glaring absence of any credible and demonstrable proof that the plaintiff refines and supplies adequate petroleum products for the daily use/consumption of Nigerians, is a recipe for disaster in Nigeria’s energy sector.”
They also informed the court that approving the plaintiff’s requested reliefs would effectively place Nigeria and its citizens at the mercy of the plaintiff regarding the availability and pricing of petroleum products within the country.
The presiding judge, Justice Inyang Ekwo, set January 20, 2025, as the date for a settlement report or further service.
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaihFajBadmT29ufud2Z
