As the naira-for-crude talks between Dangote Refinery and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited failed to progress, the former has resolved to stop selling petroleum products in naira.
This development implies that the refinery will not be loading petroleum products for the Nigerian market as it currently sources its crude stock in dollars from the international market.
The management announced the development in a statement on Wednesday, March 19, 2025.
“This decision is necessary to avoid a mismatch between our sales proceeds and our crude oil purchase obligations, which are currently denominated in U.S. dollars.
“To date, our sales of petroleum products in Naira have exceeded the value of Naira-denominated crude we have received. As a result, we must temporarily adjust our sales currency to align with our crude procurement currency,” Dangote Refinery management stated.
The refinery also debunked the claim that it’s stopped loading due to an incident of ticketing fraud, saying the claim is a malicious falsehood.
“Our attention has also been drawn to reports on the internet claiming that we are stopping loading due to an incident of ticketing fraud. This is malicious falsehood. Our systems are robust and we have had no fraud issues,” the refinery said.
The refinery, however, promised to resume petroleum product sales in naira as soon as it receives naira-denominated crude cargoes from the NNPC.
“We remain committed to serving the Nigerian market efficiently and sustainably. As soon as we receive an allocation of Naira-denominated crude cargoes from NNPC, we will promptly resume petroleum product sales in Naira,” the company stated.