The President of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote on Tuesday, urged the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) as well as oil marketers to stop the importation of petrol.
According to him, Dangote Refinery is capable of meeting local needs.
He said this after a meeting of the Implementation Committee on Crude Oil and Refined Products Sales in Naira in Abuja, which he attended.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who hosted the meeting at Aso Villa, reiterated that the sale of crude in naira would put the oil sector on an effective lane.
However, he also warned against a “revert to outdated and ineffective methods of the last 40 years”.
Dangote stated: “I assured Mr. President we will be able to supply the market minimum of 30 million litres per day, and we’ll be ramping up as we go on. So, we’re ready. We’re more than ready.
“What I’m saying is that the retailers should please come forward and load our products.
“If they don’t come forward and pick, what do you want me to do? There is nothing I can do.
“I am expecting either NNPCL or the marketers to stop importing; they should come and buy our products because we have what they need. And you know, as they move, I will be pumping.
“I don’t know whether you understand what it takes to have a billion litres inside our tank. It’s costing me money every day,” he added
“If I am able to collect the naira, I can actually charge somebody 32 per cent in interest. So, right now, that’s what I’m losing.
“And you are talking about 500 million, you know, I mean, we don’t print money. But the issue is that if they come and collect, then you will not see any queues in the filling stations,” Dangote said.
Speaking in an interview Wale Edun, the Chairman of the Committee and Finance Minister, said that the sale of crude in naira to local refiners had set the economy on the path of industrialization and modernization.
Furthermore, Edun highlighted the positive trajectory of Nigeria’s economy following recent market-driven reforms, particularly in foreign exchange and petroleum product pricing.
He also explained that the policies were paving the way for industrial growth and private-sector investment.
The minister stated that the market pricing of foreign exchange was steering the country toward industrialization by facilitating private-sector refining of crude oil.
Edun also pointed out that the local crude refining had bolstered the availability of raw materials, not only for Agriculture but for a range of industries, including chemicals, paints, building materials, and textiles.
According to Him, the reforms are in alignment with President Tinubu’s broader economic strategy, which places priorities in an enabling environment for private sector investment, job creation, and economic expansion.
While highlighting the benefits of market-driven pricing for petroleum products, the Minister said has strengthened the NNPCL’s financial stability.
Edun reiterated that this shift is empowering federal, state, and local governments with increased revenue to fulfil essential obligations, from paying public sector salaries to funding social services and infrastructure projects.
Although Edun acknowledged that the reforms mark the early steps of a broader economic transformation, he also expressed optimism about the country’s path to industrial development.
Edun stated: “We have market pricing of foreign exchange that has set the economy on the path to industrialization, because with private sector refining of crude oil, we now have raw materials, not just for agriculture, but for industry, for chemicals, for paints, for building materials, for textiles.
“This is Mr. President’s strategy and his policy of making conditions right for the private sector to invest, create jobs and grow the economy.
“Likewise, the market pricing of petroleum products has also paved the way for NNPCL to restore its balance sheet, restore its financial fortunes, and of course, to give the Federation, state and local governments more funding to allow them to meet their obligations – salary payments to workers, social services to the population generally, and of course, key infrastructure development.
“The economy has been set well and truly on a path, although it’s early steps, and there is much to be done, but we can now see a clear path to industrial development for modernization of the Nigerian economy, because the key prices are right, and it is encouraging private sector investment.”
