The Federal Government may cut its approximately N6.2tn yearly fuel import bill if the Dangote Petroleum Refinery begins the sale of petrol as promised by Aliko Dangote, the Chairman of the Dangote Group.

Speaking on Friday at the Africa CEO Forum Annual Summit in Kigali, Rwanda, Dangote gave Nigerians the assurance that, as per the refinery’s planned operations, the country would no longer require petrol imports beginning the next month.

According to a National Bureau of Statistics study, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu eliminated fuel subsidies on May 29 of last year, resulting in a monthly average reduction of the nation’s gasoline imports to one billion litres.

According to Dangote, the $20bn refinery can meet West Africa’s petrol and diesel needs, as well as the continent’s aviation fuel demand.

He said, “Right now, Nigeria has no cause to import anything apart from gasoline and by sometime in June, within the next four or five weeks, Nigeria shouldn’t import anything like gasoline; not one drop of a litre.

• West Afria’s needs

“We have enough gasoline to give to at least the entire West Africa, diesel to give to West Africa and Central Africa. We have enough aviation fuel to give to the entire continent and also export some to Brazil and Mexico.

“We have started producing jet fuel, we are producing diesel, and by next month, we’ll be producing gasoline. What that will do is it will be able to take most African crudes.”

The assurance by Dangote, if realised, would reduce the country’s approximately N6.2tn annual spending on PMS import.

With an average pump price of N670/litre, marketers put the average landing cost of petrol currently at N520/litre, considering the price of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, which is the only importer of the product.

Operators also put the average difference between the landing cost and pump price of PMS at N150/litre.

With an average monthly consumption of 1 billion litres, Nigeria currently spends approximately N520bn on the importation of PMS every month. This is N6.2tn annually.

Going by the planned June supply of PMS by Dangote, the country is expected to save a substantial amount from the elimination of shipping and other charges attached to importation, according to operators and industry experts.

The difference between the landing cost and the pump price of petrol is N150 per litre, according to operators.

Landing cost is the total cost of delivering the shipment to Nigeria from a foreign country, including all expenses incurred from the point of production to the point of delivery.

Refined petroleum products often arrive in the country via the Atlas Cove, from where it is transferred to jetties via daughter vessels. From jetties, the fuel is moved to various tanks.

Marketers say this difference of N150 between the landing cost and the pump price has to do with the cost of moving PMS from the port to various filling stations across the country. This also includes marine costs, and the Nigerian Ports Authority charges, among others.

The PMS landing cost is different from that of diesel, aviation fuel, and other petroleum products.

In foreign currency, the country spends an average of $4.16bn annually if converted the N6.2tn at the rate of N1,520 per dollar. However, there are arguments that the NNPCL spends more than this on PMS importation.

The actualisation of Dangote’s promise is expected to strengthen the naira.

According to industry reports, Nigeria spends at least $10bn annually on the import of PMS, aviation fuel, diesel and other petroleum products.

Analysts believe that not less than one-third of the country’s annual foreign exchange expenditure goes into fuel imports.

• Importation Stoppage

A reliable source at the Central Bank of Nigeria said that the anticipated commencement of fuel supply by the Dangote refinery in June would herald a positive shift in the nation’s economy.

According to the source, the move to halt fuel imports will lead to a substantial reduction in the demand for foreign exchange, thereby strengthening Nigeria’s economic position.

The source further noted that, with the demands on forex reducing, the naira would regain strength.”As the dollar demand reduces, the naira will rebound and that is good for the economy,” the CBN source said.

The NNPCL spokesperson, Olufemi Soneye, declined comments when contacted.

Soneye said the NNPCL is no longer a corporation and could not comment on Dangote refinery’s impact.

The Director of Press and Public Relations, Ministry of Finance, Mr. Mohammed Manga, could not be reached for comments on Sunday as calls and messages sent to him went unanswered.

Also, the Director of Corporate Communications, Central Bank of Nigeria, Hakama Sidi Ali, did not respond to calls to her phone. She had yet to respond to a message sent to her line.

But the Director-General of the Centre for the Promotion of Public Enterprise, Dr Muda Yusuf, said the commencement of refining of petrol by the Dangote refinery would be a game changer for the Nigerian economy, especially from the perspective of the effect on the foreign exchange market and domestic energy cost.

Yusuf noted that, currently about 30 per cent of Nigeria’s import bill is on petroleum products.

“This has been estimated at between $10bn and $15bn annually over the decade. This would amount to a substantial easing of demand pressure on the foreign exchange market,” he stated.

Yusuf added further, “Already we have seen the impact of the domestic refining on diesel and aviation fuel importation. Even the prices have dropped. I therefore expect to see a major impact on the exchange rate.

“However, this positive outlook would depend on how much of the feedstock of crude can be sourced locally by the refinery.  If the refinery has to resort to crude oil importation, the optimism about the foreign exchange impact may have to be moderated.  Because that would imply some significant forex outflows for crude importation.”

He added that Nigeria is likely to see less importation of petrochemical products and other associated by-products from the refining process.

During an energy conference in Abuja recently, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, opined that Nigeria does not need to import fuel, expressing concerns that the bulk of the country’s foreign exchange goes into fuel importation.

“We must find a solution to our forex problem. Nigeria does not need to import fuel. We should free our scarce forex for other sectors of the economy. I am aware that the bulk of our forex goes to the importation of refined oil products.” Lokpbiri stated, expressing optimism that home-based refineries would put an end to fuel importation.

• Marketers Plan Meeting

Meanwhile, fuel marketers said plans had been concluded to meet Dangote for discussions on possible price cuts as his refinery begins the production of PMS next month.

The marketers, under the aegis of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, told The PUNCH on Sunday they would meet with Dangote to negotiate a discount through bulk purchases.

Dangote’s 650,000 barrels per day refinery has been trying to secure crude supplies from the United States following the inability of Nigeria to ramp up production.

The refinery, which is the largest in Africa and Europe when it reaches full capacity, has since commenced the sale of diesel and aviation, but its petrol is yet to hit the market.

In April, Dangote crashed the price of diesel from around N1,500 to N1,000 per litre.

But Nigerians are currently eagerly waiting for petrol, which is the major fuel used by transporters, small-scale businesses and individuals for alternative power generation.

The promise of Dangote to end fuel import may be a relief to marketers and Nigerians, who are yet to fully recover from the recent fuel scarcity that nearly brought the economy to a halt in Lagos, Abuja and other parts of the nation.

Speaking in an interview with our correspondent, the National Vice President of the IPMAN, Hammed Fashola, disclosed that the marketers had requested a meeting with the Dangote Group chairman.

According to Fashola, there will be a follow-up to a letter written to Dangote earlier to fast-track a meeting and reach an agreement before the commencement of the sale of PMS.

Fashola had earlier called on the company to consider working directly with the association instead of individuals.

He noted that IPMAN should be a beautiful bride before Dangote for being in control of over 80 per cent of the filling stations in Nigeria.

The IPMAN leader said, “We have our letter with them, we are expecting their response, and we will surely do a follow-up. The letter was sent about a month ago and we are going to follow up. We are just like a ready-made market for Dangote. It is an advantage for him to have us in his programme. I believe that he would like to have us.”

He added that the association would request a discount during the meeting with Dangote.“You know when you come together as a group, you have that negotiating power on your strength. There is no way we will not negotiate for a discount. That is why we don’t encourage individual company participation,” he stated.

Credit: The Punch

A disabled Nigerian man, who has resided in the UK for 38 years, is facing the prospect of being forcibly removed from the country by the Home Office, the Guardian UK reports.

Olubunmi Anthony George, who is currently 61 years old, travelled from Nigeria to the UK in 1986, when he was just 24 years old.

He has been in the UK ever since, and the Guardian reports that he has no criminal convictions on his record.

He suffered two strokes in 2019 that significantly affected his speech and movement.

George claims that none of his close family members are now living in Nigeria.

According to George, he no longer has any immediate relatives residing in Nigeria.

He is said to have faced numerous episodes of homelessness and admitted that he has lost track of the countless friends who have sheltered him over the years.

George said, “I don’t know how many different sofas I’ve slept on—too many to count. I don’t have my life, living the way I’m living now. My health problems since I had my stroke are my biggest worry. All I’m asking for is some kindness from the home office.”

George has submitted multiple applications for leave to remain in the UK, all of which have been denied by the Home Office, with the most recent rejection occurring on May 7, 2024.

In 2005, his previous solicitors submitted a falsified entry stamp in his passport, which has since been reported to the police and the legal regulatory bodies.

According to George, he was completely unaware of the passport stamp until several years later, as he revealed to the Guardian.

According to his current lawyer, Naga Kandiah of MTC Solicitors, George’s difficulties can be attributed to his poor past legal representation.

In their latest rejection, officials from the Home Office stated that the situation was not deemed to be an exceptional circumstance.

Kandiah has filed an appeal challenging the most recent denial.

Kandiah said, “My client has been living in limbo for 38 years with no family, has suffered two strokes and has no family left in Nigeria.

“His situation is not just because of Home Office policies but also because of poor representation by previous solicitors who failed to uphold professional integrity and ethical standards.”

A spokesperson for the Home Office told the Guardian that “applications have to be considered on their merits in accordance with the immigration rules, with the responsibility on applicants to demonstrate they meet these rules.”

The Guardian also covered the story of Nelson Shardey, a 74-year-old newsagent from Merseyside.

Shardey has been living in the UK since 1977 and was recently denied indefinite leave to remain by the Home Office, despite having spent the majority of his adult life in the country.

Nigeria’s Civil Aviation Authority received a letter from the United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority claiming that Air Peace had allegedly broken several aviation safety laws.

The event transpired just three months subsequent to the Nigerian airline initiating the Lagos-London route.

The UK Civil Aviation Authority had apparently received two necessary occurrence reports on Air Peace.

The NCAA received the allegations from the UK CAA.

“United Kingdom SAFA Ramp Inspection Report with reference number: CAA-UK, -2024-0217” and “NATS Management System Safety Report” were the titles of the CAA’s letter of complaint that was sent to the NCAA.

Additionally, the NCAA has written to Air Peace to elucidate the matters at hand.

The letter, with reference number: NCAA/DOLTS/APL/Vol.11/03624 was titled, “United Kingdom SAFA Ramp Inspection Report.

It was dated May 14, 2024, and signed by the NCAA General Manager of Operations, Capt. O.O. Lawani.

In the letter, the NCAA said the UK CAA had called its attention to the no operational approval of Electronic Flight Bag functions affecting the safe operation of the aircraft, while adding that the captain of the flight admitted that an Electronic Flight Bag was being used for navigational purposes.

NCAA further noted that the CAA stated in its letter that there was “no mounting device for the use of EFB, no charging points or battery for backup.”

Air Peace recently commenced operation to London Gatwick from the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos under the Bilateral Air Services Agreement, which Nigeria has with the UK.

The spokesperson of Air Peace, Stanley Olisa, could not be reached as of press time.

When called, the spokesperson of the airline picked but when this reporter began to enquire about the development, he kept mute until the call ended.

Our correspondent also sent a text message of enquiry to the spokesman but there was no response as of the time of filing this report.