Three oil marketers have jointly filed a counter affidavit to dismiss a suit initiated by Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals at the Federal High Court in Abuja.
The marketers AYM Shafa Limited, A. A. Rano Limited, and Matrix Petroleum Services Limited, in their response, dated November 5, 2024, and marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1324/2024, contest Dangote Refinery’s claims that the Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) violated Sections 317(8) and (9) of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) by issuing import licenses to the marketers.
According to the marketers, granting Dangote Refinery’s application would have disastrous consequences for Nigeria’s oil sector, as it would lead to monopolisation.
They emphasised that Dangote Refinery does not produce enough petroleum products to meet daily national consumption and failed to provide evidence to support its claims.
The marketers argued that they are qualified to receive import licenses under Section 317(9) of the PIA, having met all necessary legal requirements. They urged the court to dismiss Dangote Refinery’s suit, which named Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited, and five other companies, including the three marketers, as defendants.
Dangote Refinery’s originating summons, dated September 6, 2024, alleged that NMDPRA’s issuance of import licenses violated the PIA and hindered local refineries like itself. However, the marketers countered that they fulfilled all conditions for import licenses and that Dangote Refinery’s suit aimed to dominate the oil sector.
“The import licenses issued to the defendants by the 1st defendant are in line with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act, 2018, and other relevant laws,” the marketers claimed.
They maintained that the competitive pricing of petroleum products in Nigeria would be eliminated if Dangote Refinery were granted the monopolistic authority it sought in the current lawsuit. Highlighting how such a move will worsen the already dire state of the nation’s economy.
They also claimed it would “unleash untold hardship on Nigerians, all of which constitute a recipe for disaster in the polity.”.
The marketers clarified that Nigeria will lose energy security if she puts all of her energy eggs in one basket by prohibiting the importation of petroleum products and permitting the plaintiff to be the only manufacturer and supplier of petroleum products in Nigeria, with the freedom to set the prices at which it supplies the products.
They added that the nation will be thrown into a heated mess of an energy crisis if the refinery fails because it is a monopolised sector.
They also informed the court that granting the plaintiff’s requested relief was intended to leave Nigeria and Nigerians at the plaintiff’s mercy about the availability and price of buying petroleum products in the nation.
The presiding judge, Inyang Ekwo, fixed January 20, 2025, for a further hearing of the matter.
The Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) insisted that the price of premium motor spirit, also known as petrol, it planned to import by December will be cheaper than the current rate if healthy competition is promoted in the sector.
In a statement by its national public relations officer, Joseph Obele, on Monday, November 4, the group said competition must be allowed in a deregulated environment.
Obele disclosed that the group had incorporated a business unit that would enable it to bring in petrol before December.
It disputed the allegation by Dangote Refinery that the marketers intend to import substandard products at a cheaper rate, saying the claims were not surprising.
PETROAN disclosed that it was not aware of the cost of petrol from Dangote Refinery until the refinery released a press statement on Sunday, November 3.
The chairman of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, on Tuesday, October 29, urged petroleum marketers, including the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), to source petrol directly from his refinery to meet local demands.
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