In the past couple of weeks, the continuing disagreements between the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), and the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) sunk to new lows with threats of litigation and yet another increase in the price of petroleum products in the country.
As always, the bone of contention is the availability and supply of crude oil and the appropriate pricing of the refined products, especially petrol, in the market for the Nigerian consumer.
After months of prevarication, the Dangote refinery came out with the price at which it supplies the product to the NNPCL, and thence to the marketers who will then sell to customers.
The marketers, however, balked at the price which they said was prohibitive and instead applied for licences to import the product into the country.
Apparently anticipating the marketers' action, the Dangote Refinery had earlier on September 6, filed a suit against the Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), NNPCL, AYM Shafa Limited, AA Rano Limited, Time Petroleum Limited, 2015 Petroleum Limited and Matrix Petroleum Limited.
Dangote was seeking the court to declare that NMDPRA violated Sections 317 (8) and (9) of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) by issuing licences for the importation of petroleum products, arguing that under the PIA such licences can only be issued when there is a shortfall in the country.
But the marketers in their counter-suit responded that the Dangote refinery had not been able to produce enough petroleum products to satisfy local demand and at affordable prices hence the need to resort to importation to meet the supply gap. The marketers insisted that granting Dangote's request would create a monopoly in the industry which would eliminate competition leading to higher petroleum products prices in the country.
Nigerians grappling incessantly with the scarcity of petroleum products and ever-increasing price of the commodities when available are not amused with these unending issues by the very agencies which are statutorily responsible to resolve the bottlenecks in the products supply chain and ensure availability and affordability in the market. But it appears all the parties concerned are neither prepared nor inclined to tackle this mandate squarely.
Dangote refinery, on which much hope and expectation had been placed by Nigerians as the panacea for the decade-long issues bedevilling the oil and gas industry, should be seen to be working towards achieving that goal. Sadly, some Nigerians are beginning to suspect that the resort by the company to seek the exclusion of oil marketers from importing petroleum products is aimed at removing competition in the sector. The company, without prejudice to what it wants to gain, should find a way of making petrol incomparable with imported products in terms of pricing and quality to foreclose any complaints by importers.
Similarly, NNPCL's heavy involvement is incompatible with its status as a private company and a leader in the industry. Nigerians still cannot fathom how the NNPCL, which ought to work assiduously towards revamping its now comatose refineries, would seek to get heavily involved in the Dangote refinery. It hardly appears noble to Nigerians that the company has been openly trying to create unnecessary stumbling blocks for the operation of the Dangote refinery.
That is why, like majority of Nigerians, we believe the continuing hiatus between the parties is unnecessary and indeed insensitive to the plight of the Nigerian people.
The crude is abundantly available and with the Dangote refinery on board, we also have the refining capacity to serve our needs. The industry has also been deregulated with the passage of the PIA, which offers a level playing field for all players to operate and deliver the dividends to Nigerians.
For the umpteenth time, we are calling on the NNPCL to fix its refineries and start production. This will certainly provide the avenue for healthy competition. For now, it is uncharitable to accuse someone of monopoly when other players refuse to provide a fair challenge with their refineries.
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Petroleum marketers must put the interest of Nigerians first ahead of any other gain. We urge them to consider venturing into refining of petroleum products instead of considering just importation as an option. With this, they will not only provide needed competition in the market but also create more employment opportunities in the country.
We at the Daily Trust also call on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who is also the Minister of Petroleum Resources, to quickly intervene and put a halt to the simmering disputes among the oil industry players. The patience of Nigerians who are caught in the middle of all this through no fault of theirs is wearing thin.
His intervention will also help in bringing the needed relief to our industries that see their cost of production rising due to the uncertainty in the cost of energy.
The earlier the principal players put an end to this seemingly unending and unnecessary blame game the better for the nation's citizens and its economy.
