Oredola Adeola

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has clarified that it is not the exclusive offtaker of all petroleum products from Dangote Refinery and will only fully offtake Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) if market prices exceed the pump prices in Nigeria.

Olufemi Soneye, Chief Corporate Communications Officer, NNPC made his known in a statement obtained by Advisors Reports on Saturday.

NNPC Ltd made this known in statement in response to a press release by the Muslim Rights Concern, MURIC, which claims that the Dangote Refinery Limited (DRL) is being undermined by (NNPC Ltd).

Advisors Reports gathered that MURIC had asserted that recent changes to the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) will prevent the Dangote Refinery from offering lower prices and that NNPC Ltd. has become the sole offtaker of all products from the refinery.

The NNPCL’s spokesperson further stated that to set the records straight, “The pricing of petroleum products from any refinery, including the Dangote Refinery Ltd. (DRL), is determined by global market forces.

” The recent changes in PMS prices have no impact on the DRL or any other domestic refinery’s access to the Nigerian market. In fact, if current prices are 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 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.

” NNPC Ltd. cannot undermine a business in which it holds a billion-dollar stake,” the NNPCL spokesman said

Soneye further emphasised that 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.