"Old Issue": Dangote Gives Update on Legal Dispute Against NNPC, 6 Others
- Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals announced that it was working with the NNPC and other parties to reach an out-of-court settlement
- The company recently filed a lawsuit against the NNPCL in the Federal High Court in Abuja, seeking the cancellation of its licenses and demanding N100 billion in damages
- However, Dangote said in a statement that it was willing to work out a cordial agreement with NNPCL and other defendants
Legit.ng journalist Zainab Iwayemi has over 3-year-experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market.
Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals said that it has reached an out-of-court settlement with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and six other parties about import licenses that the Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) had given them to bring petrol into national borders.
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Earlier, the company petitioned a Federal High Court in Abuja to revoke the licenses and grant it N100 billion in damages against the NNPCL, the first defendant.
However, Dangote stated in a statement reported by Vanguard that it is open to reaching a friendly settlement with the NNPCL and other defendants regarding what it described as an old action filed in June.
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An old statement
The statement, signed by the company's group chief branding and communications officer, Anthony Chiejine, read:
‘’This is an old issue that started in June and culminated in a matter filed on Sept 6, 2024.
‘’Currently, the parties are in discussion since President Bola Tinubu’s directive on crude oil and refined product sales in naira initiative, which the Federal Executive Council, FEC, approved.
‘’We have made tremendous progress in that regard and events have overtaken this development. No party has been served with court processes and there is no intention of doing so. We have agreed to put a halt to the proceedings.
‘’It is important to stress that no orders have been made and there are no adverse effects on any party. We understand that once the matter comes up in January 2025, we will be in a position to formally withdraw the matter in court.’’
What the lawsuit is about
Dangote had questioned the validity of the defendants' license to import refined petroleum products into the nation while there was no production shortage in the lawsuit, which was filed under the filing number FHC/ABJ/CS/1324/2024.
A.A. Rano Limited, T. Time Petroleum Limited, 2015 Petroleum Limited, AYM Shafa Limited, the Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, NMDPRA, and Matrix Petroleum Services Limited are the others defendants in the lawsuit.
For allegedly continuing to provide import licenses to NNPCL and the other defendants for the importation of petroleum goods including Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) and Jet Fuel (aviation turbine fuel) into Nigeria, the plaintiff is also requesting that the court grant N100 billion in damages.
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It told the court that the licences were issued to the defendants, “despite the production of AGO and Jet-A1 that exceeds the current daily consumption of petroleum products in Nigeria by the Dangote Refinery.”
In particular, among other things, Dangote Refinery requested an order of injunction prohibiting the first defendant (NMDPRA) from granting and/or extending import permits to the second through seventh defendants or other businesses in order to import petroleum products.
In addition, it requested a court order compelling the first defendant to close all tank farms, storage facilities, warehouses, and stations that the defendants used to store all refined petroleum products imported into Nigeria, as well as general damages in the amount of N100 billion.
FG revokes petrol import licenses
Legit.ng reported that the Nigerian government, via the NMDPRA unveiled new regulations to simplify petrol import licensing and other operational rules in the industry and distilled them into a single document.
The NMDPRA stated that former guidelines regarding midstream and downstream operations operated by the defunct Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) have become obsolete and revoked.
The proposed 2024 NMDPRA operations will allow the regulator to reduce the complexities of navigating and implementing numerous regulations in the petroleum sector.
Proofreading by James, Ojo Adakole, journalist and copy editor at Legit.ng.
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