The Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed the ₦100 billion lawsuit filed by Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE against the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and six others over a dispute concerning the issuance of fuel import licences.
Justice Mohammed Umar, in a ruling delivered on Wednesday, dismissed the case after counsel to Dangote Refinery, C. O. Adegbe, applied to withdraw the suit. Lawyers representing the defendants subsequently moved for the matter to be struck out, which the court granted.
The defendants in the case were the Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), NNPCL, AYM Shafa Limited, A.A. Rano Limited, T. Time Petroleum Limited, 2015 Petroleum Limited, and Matrix Petroleum Services Limited.
Dangote Refinery had approached the court seeking an order to nullify import licences issued by the NMDPRA to NNPCL and the five private companies for the importation of refined petroleum products. The company also demanded ₦100 billion in damages against the NMDPRA for allegedly continuing to issue such licences despite its ongoing operations as a local refiner.
NNPCL Eyes 20% Stake in Dangote Refinery
Meanwhile, NNPCL has indicated plans to raise its equity stake in Dangote Refinery to 20 per cent, according to the Group Chief Executive Officer, Bayo Ojulari.
Ojulari disclosed this during the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference (ADIPEC), where he also announced that the company was enhancing transparency in preparation for a future initial public offering (IPO).
“The IPO journey is prescribed by law under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA). It’s not optional. We have started publishing our monthly performance reports since May this year, and that will continue,” Ojulari stated.
He, however, did not specify a timeline for the proposed IPO.
Protesters Demand Protection for Dangote Refinery
In a related development, members of the National Association of Polytechnic Students (NAPS) on Wednesday staged a peaceful protest in Benin City, calling on the Federal Government to protect Dangote Refinery as a “national strategic asset.”
Led by NAPS President, Comrade Eshiofune Paul Oghayan, the protesters argued that the refinery represented Nigeria’s capacity for domestic crude oil refining and should be shielded from “sabotage and vested interests” within the fuel importation sector.
“If we feed the refinery fully, it will crash fuel prices, strengthen the naira, and stop the bleeding of foreign exchange,” Oghayan said.
“We call on the Federal Government to ensure full crude oil supply to Dangote Refinery and to prioritise locally refined fuel in national procurement for transport, aviation, power, and defence sectors.”
He urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to dismantle what he described as “importation cartels” and support full national industrialisation through domestic refining.
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