BREAKING:FG Meets With Dangote Officials, Says Naira-For-Crude Still In Effect
Nigerian Government on Wednesday announced that the sale of crude oil in naira to Dangote and other refineries in Nigeria will continue as long as the initiative aligns with the public interest and supports national economic objectives.
The decision to continue with the initiative, which initially came to an end on March 31 this year, was reached after a meeting between members of the Technical Sub-Committee on the Crude and Refined Product Sales in Naira.
The meeting, held at the Ministry of Finance’s headquarters, was convened to review progress and address ongoing implementation matters.
The meeting was attended by the Chairman of the Implementation Committee, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun; the Chairman of the Technical Sub-Committee and Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Mr. Zacch Adedeji; the Chief Financial Officer of NNPC Limited, Mr. Dapo Segun; the Coordinator of NNPC Refineries; Management of NNPC Trading; and representatives of Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals.
Also in attendance are senior officials from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), representative of Afreximbank, as well as the Secretary of the Committee, Hauwa Ibrahim.
The stakeholders reaffirmed the government’s continued commitment to the full implementation of this strategic initiative, as directed by the Federal Executive Council (FEC).
They stated that the Crude and Refined Product Sales in Naira initiative is not a temporary or time-bound intervention, but a key policy directive designed to support sustainable local refining, bolster energy security, and reduce reliance on foreign exchange in the domestic petroleum market.
As with any major policy shift, the Committee acknowledged that implementation challenges may arise from time to time.
However, it added that such issues are being actively addressed through coordinated efforts among all parties.
The initiative, the committee affirmed at its meeting, remains in effect and will continue for as long as it aligns with the public interest and supports national economic objectives.
Recall that the Federal Executive Council, under the leadership of President Bola Tinubu, had in September last year approved the sale of crude to local refineries in Naira and corresponding purchase of petroleum products in Naira.
This initiative was to help reduce pressure on the Naira, eliminate unnecessary transaction costs, and improve the availability of petroleum products in the country.
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There had been reports that the NNPC had terminated the agreement and that the alleged termination would raise the price of petrol.
But the NNPC had, in a statement made available to THE WHISTLER, stated that the sale of crude oil in Naira was structured as a six-month agreement, subject to availability, and expired at the end of March 2025.
Under the initial arrangement, the NNPC had made over 48 million barrels of crude oil available to Dangote Refinery since October 2024.
In aggregate, the NNPC had made over 84 million barrels of crude oil available to the Refinery since its commencement of operations in 2023.
NNPC had said it remains committed to supplying crude oil for local refining based on mutually agreed terms and conditions.
