Three oil marketers have told a Federal High Court, sitting in Abuja, that alleged planned monopoly of the energy sector by Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals will spell doom for the country’s oil sector.
According to them, the plan to monopolise the oil sector by Dangote is a recipe for disaster in the country.
The three marketers, AYM Shafa Limited, A A Rano Limited and Matrix Petroleum Services Limited, in their replies to a suit filed by Dangote Petroleum, the Plaintiff in the suit numbered, FHC/CS/ABM/1324/2024, told the court that the Plaintiff does not produce adequate petroleum products for the daily consumption of Nigerians.
The plaintiff had, in September 2024, sued the Nigeria Midstream And Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPC), AYM Shafa Limited, A A Rano Limited, T Time Petroleum Limited, 2015 Petroleum Limited and Matrix Petroleum Services Limited.
In the suit dated September 6, the plaintiff prayed the court to declare that NMDPRA is in violation of Sections 317(eight) and (nine) of the Petroleum Industry Act by issuing licences for the importation of petroleum products.
He stated that such licences should only be issued in circumstances where there is a petroleum product shortfall and urged the court to declare that NMDPRA is in violation of its statutory responsibilities under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) for not encouraging local refineries such as Dangote Refinery.
However, the marketers in their response dated November 5, 2024, told the court that they are well qualified and entitled to be issued import licence by the first defendant to import petroleum products in Nigeria within the meaning of Section 317(9) of the Petroleum Industry Act.
According to them, “That in the event of any breakdown in or obstruction to the production chain of the plaintiff which stops it from producing, Nigeria will be thrown into energy crises as Nigeria does not have the reserves that would last it for at least 30 days that it would need to order, pay for, freight and import refined products into tanks in Nigeria.
“That amidst the glaring absence of any credible and demonstrable proof that the plaintiff refines and supplies adequate petroleum products for the daily use/consumption of Nigerians, giving the plaintiff judicial imprimatur to be the sole supplier of refined petroleum products to Nigerians, thereby encouraging monopoly in a major aspect of Nigeria’s oil industry, is a recipe for disaster in Nigeria’s energy sector.
“The import licences lawfully and validly issued to the defendants did not in any way whatsoever, cripple the plaintiff’s business or its refinery.
“The import licences issued to the Defendants by the 1st Defendant are in line with the provisions of Petroleum Industry Act, 2021, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act, 2018 and other relevant laws”, the marketers told the court.
