In order to invest in CNG, NNPC reduced its interest in the Dangote refinery – Official
Olufemi Soneye, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited’s spokesperson, revealed that the state-owned energy company has sold off a portion of its Dangote refinery in order to allocate funds to compressed natural gas.
According to Soneye, the NNPC limited its ownership to 7.2% rather than 20% in order to construct CNG stations around the country.
Our correspondent was able to view a video of him saying this during his appearance on Berekete Family Radio on Monday.
Soneye was asked to address claims that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Regulatory Commission were working together to damage the Dangote refinery.
The claims that the NNPC would harm a business in which it held a 7.2% share were refuted by him.
He said that the NNPC realized that, particularly during the energy transition phase, CNG was a more cost-effective energy source for Nigerians.
“We wanted to invest in CNG, which is why we reduced our stake in the Dangote refinery.” We saw that CNG is really affordable and that people are investing in more affordable, clean alternative energy sources all across the world.
“For this reason, the NNPC is constructing several CNG stations across the country. We are aware that Nigerians may fill their automobiles up and drive for two weeks with N10,000. Why don’t we invest in gas since we discovered it’s less expensive in Nigeria? said the NNPC representative.
Soneye asserted, “We want all Nigerians to know that the NNPCL has no issue with the Dangote Refinery,” in response to the charge of sabotage. We are among the Dangote refinery’s owners, and we do not want it to fail.
“We put billions of naira into the refinery owned by Dangote. We currently hold a 7.2% interest in the refinery. Why therefore would we wish to undermine a business like that?
He insisted that Farouk Ahmed, the CEO of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, was speaking in his capacity as a regulator overseeing all midstream and downstream firms, including the NNPC.
The head of Nigeria’s downstream and mainstream petroleum regulatory agencies is Mr. Farouk Ahmed. They are in charge of every refinery. They are in charge of everything related to the distribution of gasoline. In that regard, they really outperform the NNPC. Soneye said, “We have nothing to do with them.”
With an option to buy the remaining 12.75 percent of the refinery by June 2024, the NNPC paid $1.0 billion in 2021 to acquire a 7.25 percent ownership in the facility. However, the national oil company has since changed its mind.
In July, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, the president of the Dangote Group, revealed that the NNPC’s share of the refinery was just 7.2%, not 20% as previously believed.
“We actually had a 20 percent deal with NNPC, but they didn’t pay the remaining amount until last year. We then gave them another extension until June 2024, and they stated they would stay at the 7.2% that they had previously paid.
NNPC therefore only owns 7.2% of the company, not 20%. Dangote declared.
In the meantime, Oby Ezekwesili, a former minister of education, demanded an independent audit to determine why the NNPC limited its stake in the Dangote refinery to 7.2% rather than 20%.
“Did the Nigerian government fail to disclose that it obtained a $3.3 billion loan from Afrieximbank in order to acquire a portion of the Dangote refinery?” Ezekwesili enquired.
In order to provide the people with the accurate picture of the situation, she urged President Bola Tinubu to promptly begin an independent audit of the Dangote refinery-NNPC deal.
According to a recent report from credit rating company Fitch Ratings, the Dangote refinery intended to sell the remaining 12.7% NNPC interest this year for loan repayments.
