President Bola Tinubu has expressed confidence that using the naira for crude oil transactions will stabilize Nigeria’s oil sector.
During a review meeting with the Implementation Committee on Naira-based sales of crude oil and refined products, Tinubu emphasized the need for solutions that avoid past pitfalls in the oil industry.
The President highlighted that the shift to naira transactions aims to eliminate exchange rate challenges, urging stakeholders to focus on improving local production of petrol and petroleum products to reduce reliance on imports. He called for collaboration among oil sector stakeholders to enhance the Nigerian economy and improve living standards for citizens.
Tinubu suggested utilizing Afreximbank as a settlement bank for these transactions, noting that the bank is already involved as a financial advisor. He emphasized the importance of allowing market dynamics to dictate profit and loss, facilitating more efficient interactions between independent marketers and government entities.
In a related discussion, Aliko Dangote, CEO of Dangote Group, urged marketers to prioritize supply from Dangote Refinery. He reported that the refinery currently holds over 500 million liters of fuel in reserve and is capable of producing 30 million liters per day. Dangote emphasized the potential to meet the country’s needs without imports, stating that his refinery could sustain the market for over 12 days with existing reserves.
He called on the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and other marketers to cease imports and utilize local supplies to alleviate fuel shortages and eliminate queues at filling stations.
Dangote expressed a willingness to meet market demands, highlighting the financial burden of holding large reserves without distribution.
