The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has addressed recent social media reports claiming the unilateral termination of its crude oil sales agreement with Dangote Refinery. In a statement issued on Monday, NNPCL’s Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Olufemi Soneye, provided clarity on the matter.
Soneye explained that the contract for the sale of crude oil in Naira was designed as a six-month agreement, with the provision to renew subject to availability. The current contract, he stated, is set to expire by the end of March 2025, and discussions are already underway to establish a new agreement moving forward.
As part of this arrangement, NNPCL has made over 48 million barrels of crude oil available to Dangote Refinery since October 2024. Overall, the NNPCL has supplied a total of more than 84 million barrels of crude oil to the refinery since its operations began in 2023.
Soneye emphasized that NNPCL remains committed to supplying crude oil to local refineries based on mutually agreed terms and conditions. The Federal Executive Council (FEC) had, in July 2024, instructed NNPCL to sell crude oil to Dangote Refinery and other domestic refineries in Naira, rather than in U.S. dollars. This move is part of efforts to reduce the pressure on Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves and to stabilize the prices of petroleum products such as petrol and diesel across the country.
