Dangote Refinery free to sell petrol directly to any marketer – NNPC
NNPCL
Published By: Ayorinde Oluokun
By Ayorinde Olukun/Abuja
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) has said it has no desire or intention to be the sole offtaker of petrol produced by the Dangote Refinery Limited, DRL.
NNPC Ltd said this while reacting to claim by the Muslim Rights Concern, MURIC that the Dangote Refinery Limited (DRL) is being undermined by actions of the NNPC Ltd.
MURIC had in a statement issued on Friday claimed that recent changes to the pump price of petrol will prevent the Dangote Refinery from selling the product at lower prices to Nigerians.
The group also claimed NNPC Ltd. has become the sole offtaker of all products from the refinery to the detriment of Nigerians.
However, Olufemi Soneye, Chief Corporate Communications Officer, NNPC Ltd in a statement on Saturday dismissed the claims of MURIC.
While puncturing the claims of the group, NNPC LTD in the statement, noted that the pricing of petroleum products from any refinery, including the Dangote Refinery Ltd. (DRL), is determined by global market forces.
The company thefore noted that recent changes in PMS prices have no impact on the DRL or any other domestic refinery’s access to the Nigerian market.
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“In fact, if current prices perceived as high, it presents an ideal opportunity for the refinery to sell its products at lower prices in the Nigerian market.
“Furthermore, we emphasize that there is no guarantee of lower prices associated with domestic refining compared to any global parity pricing framework, as confirmed by the DRL.
“The NNPC Ltd. will only fully offtake PMS from the DRL if the market prices of PMS are higher than the pump prices in Nigeria.
“The DRL and any other domestic refinery are free to sell directly to any marketer on a willing buyer, willing seller basis, which is the current practice for all fully deregulated products.
“NNPC Ltd. has no desire or intention to become the distributor for any entity in a free market environment, and therefore, the notion of becoming a sole offtaker does not arise.
“The NNPC Ltd. cannot undermine a business in which it holds a billion-dollar stake.
“As an advocacy group for fair and just treatment, MURIC should have verified the facts before making statements that are entirely flawed and has the potential to incite ordinary Nigerians against the NNPC Ltd.”
