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Dangote refinery insists international oil companies are frustrating its crude supply demands
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
The Management of Dangote Industries Limited (DIL) has commended the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) for its various interventions in the oil company’s crude supply requests from International Oil Companies (IOCs), and for publishing the Domestic Crude Supply Obligation (DCSO) guidelines to enshrine transparency in the oil industry.
KANO FOCUS reports that the Vice President, of Oil & Gas, Dangote Industries Limited, Mr. DVG Edwin however said: “If the Domestic Crude Supply Obligation (DCSO) guidelines are diligently implemented, this will ensure that we deal directly with the companies producing the crude oil in Nigeria as stipulated by the PIA.”
Edwin insisted that IOCs operating in Nigeria have consistently frustrated the company’s requests for locally produced crude as feedstock for its refining process.
He highlighted that when cargoes are offered to the oil company by the trading arms, it is sometimes at a $2-$4 (per barrel) premium above the official price set by NUPRC. “As an example, we paid $96.23 per barrel for a cargo of Bonga crude grade in April (excluding transport). The price consisted of $90.15 dated Brent price + $5.08 NNPC premium (NSP) + $1 trader premium. In the same month, we were able to buy WTI at a dated Brent price of $90.15 + $0.93 trader premium including transport. When NNPC subsequently lowered its premium based on market feedback that it was too high, some traders then started asking us for a premium of up to $4m over and above the NSP for a cargo of Bonny Light”
“Data on platforms like Platts and Argus shows that the price offered to us is way higher than the market prices tracked by these platforms. We recently had to escalate this to NUPRC”, Edwin said and urged the regulatory commission to take a second look at the issue of pricing.
Edwin’s response came against the background of a statement by the Chief Executive Officer of NUPRC, Engr. Gbenga Komolafe, in an interview on ARISE News TV said that “it is ‘erroneous’ for one to say that the International Oil Companies (IOCs) are refusing to make crude oil available to domestic refiners, as the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) has a stipulation that calls for a willing buyer-willing seller relationship.”
Edwin noted that “The NUPRC has been very supportive to the Dangote Refinery as they have intervened several times to help us secure crude supply. However, the NUPRC Chief Executive was probably misquoted by some people hence his statement that IOCs did not refuse to sell to us. To set the records straight, we would like to recap the facts below.
“Aside from Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), to date, we have only purchased crude directly from one other local producer (Sapetro). All other producers refer us to their international trading arms.
“These international trading arms are non-value adding middlemen who sit abroad and earn margin from crude being produced and consumed in Nigeria. They are not bound by Nigerian laws and do not pay tax in Nigeria on the unjustifiable margin they earn.
“The trading arm of one of the IOCs refused to sell to us directly and asked us to find a middleman who would buy from them and then sell to us at a margin. We dialogued with them for 9 months and in the end, we had to escalate to NUPRC who helped resolve the situation,” Edwin stated.
According to him, “When we entered the market to purchase our crude requirement for August, the international trading arms told us that they had entered their Nigerian cargoes into a Pertamina (the Indonesia National Oil Company) tender, and we had to wait for the tender to conclude to see what is still available.
“This is not the first time. In many cases, particular crude grades we wish to buy are sold to Indian or other Asian refiners even before the cargoes are formally allocated in the curtailment meeting chaired by NUPRC.
“However, we would like to urge NUPRC to take a second look at the issue of pricing. NUPRC has severally asserted that transactions should be on a willing seller / willing buyer basis. The challenge however is that market liquidity (many sellers / many buyers in the market at the same time) is a precondition for this. Where a refinery needs a particular crude grade loading at a particular time then there is typically only one participant on either side of the market.
“It is to avoid the problem of price gouging in an illiquid market that the domestic gas supply obligation specifies volume obligation per producer and a formula for transparently determining pricing. The fact that the domestic crude supply obligation as defined in the PIA has gaps is no reason for wisdom not to prevail”, Edwin stated.
The Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPSR) has named the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) among the top three Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of the Federal Government with the Best Ranking in Website Performance for 2025.
KANO FOCUS reports that this is coming barely three weeks after the telecom regulator was recognized as one of the top five best-performing Federal Government agencies for 2025 by the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) – a testament to the Commission’s consistency in investment in technology for ensuring efficient service delivery.
In the BPSR 2024/2025 scorecard ranking of agencies’ websites, the NCC came second in the ranking, trailing behind Galaxy Backbone Limited, which came first while the Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC) clinched the third position, from a pool of 235 MDAs, whose website were evaluated.
BPSR deployed 14 evaluation criteria in include MDA’s website compliance with .gov.ng domain name, appearance and aesthetics (look and feel) of the website, content, relevance to MDAs mandate/government policy and the website’ structure. Others include website’s responsiveness (device compatibility), security, load time, usability/ease of navigation, availability/uptime, functionality, interactivity, accessibility and capacity building.
The recognition was announced at the official release of Federal Government 2024/2025 Scorecard Ranking for MDAs’ Website held at the Federal Ministry of Finance Auditorium in Abuja on Monday (December 22, 2025) while the award presentation took place at BPSR’s Office on Tuesday (December 23, 2025).
The award, which is an important index metric of the National e-Government Masterplan for determining the Nigeria e-Government Status, was received by the Commission in recognition of its commitment to maintaining a world-class website that enhances service delivery to the citizens.
Receiving the award on behalf of the Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Dr. Aminu Maida, the NCC’s Executive Commissioner, Technical Services, Abraham Oshadami, appreciated the BPSR for the recognition, describing the award as “another encouragement for the Commission to be a better public service institution leveraging digital platforms such as our web presence to enhance public service delivery to our various stakeholders, thereby implementing the Federal Government’s Ease of Doing Business policy direction.”
While presenting the award to the NCC, alongside other two agencies, BPSR’s Director-General, Mr. Dasuki Arabi, commended the top three for their proactive decisions in maintaining world-class websites, which are compliant with the Federal Government’s policy direction in effective and efficient service delivery to the citizens.
According to the DG, the 2024/2025 MDA’s websites’ ranking represents a collective effort of federal public institutions in Nigeria to be transparent, accountable and open in governance, as well as a confirmation to align with global best practices in service delivery to the citizens.
Developed about six years ago, Arabi said as a result of the annual ranking, more public institutions have indicated readiness to embrace reforms, and align with the policy direction of the current administration’s Renewed Hope agenda on improve governance for effective service delivery, as introduced by His Excellency President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“The ideals of harnessing and deploying technological tools for service delivery has become imperative following the COVID pandemic, and distortions of socio-economic system of nations, culminating in the evolution of competitiveness, cost effectiveness, and agile governance.
“As engine room of governance, it behoves on us in the public service to perform our statutory duties and we must put in place technological innovations and standardized websites to operate services as well as deliver service needs to citizens,” he said.
The Scorecard exercise, he said, is part of the BPSR reform broader function of conducting research on reform implementation efforts and presenting ‘best practice’ models to the entire Public Service, and to among others, improve access to government information, facilitate seamless financial transaction, eliminate corruption and cyber theft, as well as facilitate access to government services.
Speaking on the rigorous nature of the exercise that produced the top three winners, the DG said “in the past few weeks members of the Scorecard Jury drawn from inter-Ministerial Agencies, had worked tirelessly to mill websites of selected MDAs through a rigorous process of enduring criteria for the ranking and the outcome had also passed through a quality assurance mechanism to validate the outcome.”
Nnenna Ukoha
Head, Public Affairs
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) acknowledges the Quality of Service (QoS) challenges being experienced in Abuja, which have impacted the quality of experience of telecommunications subscribers.
In response, the Commission is collaborating with major stakeholders and licensees to address these challenges, largely caused by disruption to diesel supply affecting IHS Nigeria Limited, the colocation provider responsible for powering Airtel and MTN base stations in the affected areas.
The challenges are a result of the activities of the National Oil and Gas Suppliers Association (NOGASA), which disrupted diesel supplies to sites with the attendant telecommunications services outages in Abuja. The NCC is committed to ensuring seamless communication services for all Nigerians and recognizes the importance of reliable power supply for the provision of optimal telecommunication services.
The NCC is actively engaging with relevant stakeholders to address the diesel supply issues and explore sustainable solutions. The Commission urges all parties to work together to collaboratively resolve these challenges swiftly by removing the diesel supply bottlenecks affecting critical telecommunications infrastructure, arising from NOGASA’s actions.
In the face of these challenges, we reiterate our commitment to fostering a conducive environment for the growth and sustainability of telecommunications services in Nigeria. We are taking proactive steps to facilitate dialogues between the impacted service providers and other stakeholders to promptly resolve the diesel supply concerns that have negatively impacted service quality.
The Commission remains dedicated to effectively managing the situation and will keep the public updated on progress towards restoring full telecommunication services in Abuja. We thank telecommunications subscribers for their understanding and patience during this period and reaffirm our commitment to delivering high-quality telecommunications services nationwide.
Mrs. Nnenna Ukoha
Head, Public Affairs
The Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) has named the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) one of the top five best-performing Federal Government agencies for 2025 under the Transparency and Efficiency Category. The NCC was recognized alongside the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, which emerged overall best-performing agency; the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, which placed second; as well as the Nigeria Customs Service and the Nigerian Ports Authority.
KANO FOCUS reports that the recognition was announced at the PEBEC Awards and Gala Night held on Tuesday at the State House Banquet Hall, Abuja.
The award celebrates transparency and efficiency in Nigeria’s public service and was presented to the Commission for its “commitment to openness, accountability and operational excellence in Public Service Delivery.”
Receiving the award on behalf of the Commission, the Executive Vice Chairman/CEO of the NCC, Dr. Aminu Maida, reaffirmed the Commission’s commitment to sustaining transparency and accountability in its regulatory approach. He noted that these principles remain central to improving industry performance and fostering a conducive environment for telecommunications businesses to thrive.
“The Commission is proud to be listed among the Top Five Best-Performing Federal Government Agencies for 2025. This recognition is an affirmation of the values that guide our work: transparency, accountability, and an unwavering commitment to regulatory excellence. It signals that the reforms we have pursued, the systems we have strengthened, and the decisions we have taken are yielding the right results.
“For us at the NCC, this honour is both a validation and a responsibility. It reassures us that we are on the right path, and at the same time challenges us to deepen our commitment to the Nigerian people
“As an economic regulator, our mandate is to create an environment where operators can thrive—an environment that attracts investment and sustains healthy competition, ensuring consumers enjoy the best possible choices.
“Nigerians can rest assured that we will not rest on our oars. We remain fully committed to ensuring that the telecom consumer receives the highest quality of service, supported by a fair, transparent, and competitive industry. We will also continue to strengthen our collaborations with all stakeholders—because meaningful progress in our sector can only be achieved through shared commitment and collective action,” Dr. Maida stated.
Speaking at the awards, the PEBEC Director-General, Zahrah Mustapha-Audu, said the event was organised to celebrate reform champions and highlight progress made in improving the country’s business climate.
“This evening is not merely an awards ceremony; it is a powerful affirmation of possibilities, honouring the champions who have moved beyond compliance, embracing excellence as the new standard for public service delivery.
“The achievements we acknowledge are the tangible result of collective resolve to make Nigeria the most attractive and predictable competitive destination for business in Africa.
“Under the unwavering leadership of His Excellency, President Bola Tinubu, and the active chairmanship of Vice President Sen. Kashim Shettima, our reform efforts have been characterised by intentionality, accountability, and the strategic deployment of data.
“We understand that to fix the operational environment for businesses, we must first fix the government’s framework.”
Vice President Kashim Shettima, who chairs the council, said the awards reflect the government’s commitment to a more efficient and competitive public service.
“The Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council has spent the last couple of years championing reforms that speak to the whole of our economic aspirations.
“The reforms that make it easier to do business, that restore your best confidence, that ensure our institutions work in the spirit of national growth.
“Tonight, we salute the men and women driving these institutions, when we commit to working together across MDAs, across states and across sectors, Nigeria wins,” he said.
Signed
Mrs. Nnenna Ukoha
Head, Public Affairs
BPSR Ranks NCC among Top 3 MDAs in Best Website Performance in 2025
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