Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

The Dangote Refinery on Wednesday announced the suspension of petroleum products in Naira, implying that it cannot continue to dispense in the local currency while purchasing in dollars.

In a statement, the facility in Lagos owned by Africa’s richest richest man, Aliko Dangote, stated that if it continues to sell in Naira, it will experience a mismatch in sales proceeds and crude oil purchases.

“We wish to inform you that, Dangote Petroleum Refinery has temporarily halted the sale of petroleum products in Naira.

“This decision is necessary to avoid a mismatch between our sales proceeds and our crude oil purchase obligations, which are currently denominated in U.S. dollars,” it stated.

It noted that till date, its sales of petroleum products in Naira had exceeded the value of Naira-denominated crude it had received.

“As a result, we must temporarily adjust our sales currency to align with our crude procurement currency,” it stressed.

With the temporary halt, what is clear is that ongoing negotiations between the federal government and the organisation to renew the Naira-for-Crude deal which expires this month, may have broken down.

Besides, the Dangote refinery also refuted insinuations that it had stopped loading due to an incident of ticketing fraud, describing it as malicious.

“Our attention has also been drawn to reports on the internet claiming that we are stopping loading due to an incident of ticketing fraud. This is malicious falsehood. Our systems are robust and we have had no fraud issues.

“We remain committed to serving the Nigerian market efficiently and sustainably. As soon as we receive an allocation of Naira-denominated crude cargoes from NNPC, we will promptly resume petroleum product sales in Naira.

“We appreciate your understanding and cooperation during this period,” it stated.

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