Kyari refutes allegations of not willing to sell crude oil to Dangote in Naira

The Group Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, Mele Kyari has refuted allegations suggesting that the company was unwilling to sell crude oil to Dangote in naira as part of a scheme to undermine the refinery.

The Federal Government on October 1, 2024 officially commenced the sales of crude oil and refined petroleum products in naira, the Federal Government has announced.

Director of the Information and Public Relations, Ministry of Finance, Mohammed Manga in a statement quoted the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, who had said that in line with the Federal Executive Council (FEC) directive, the sale of the products in naira commenced on October 1.

Kyari said, “There are too many claimants out there, that the NNPC does not want to sell crude to the refinery in naira as a form of sabotage. Far from it! It makes no difference to us because if you sell crude to the domestic refinery in naira and you buy the product in naira from the domestic refinery, it’s a net zero gain. You lose nothing, you probably gain nothing.

“Otherwise, whatever you do, you still have to source foreign exchange to import if you have to import. So, if you stop the import and sell in naira, what you are simply doing is just a substitution. It’s a settlement platform and we must commend the President for bringing this initiative.

“What it will do to our country is that the biggest source of FX pressure in our country is the import of PMS. It’s the highest value. That means if you can take that under control, it means that speculation around the naira to the extent of those FX that is required for domestic product supply will be eliminated.

“That means speculation will go, you would have controlled inflation, and you would have controlled the FX pressure because it would have settled the exchange rate for 50 per cent of your imports. This is a very great initiative. I should commend the President for bringing this initiative.”

“You are driving a Keke-Napep and you want Lamborghini fuel, you do not need it. So, the quality issue is a relative thing, it’s by geography, by location, and we will do everything possible to make sure that we domesticate this.”

Kyari described Nigerian crude as ‘Lamborghini crude,’ suggesting that the resulting products would be on the pricier side.