Granting Dangote Refinery the monopoly it seeks would be a recipe for disaster, unleashing severe hardship on citizens, a major oil firm’s managing director has warned in a series of filing at the Federal High Court in Abuja.
However, in a statement attached to a sworn affidavit, Abiodun warned of the potential disaster if the refinery’s request is granted. The defendants’ lawyer also argued that granting Dangote’s request would violate Nigeria’s international obligations under the World Trade Organization, its protocols, and other international treaties.This development follows Dangote’s ongoing disputes with regulators over the pricing of the petrol refined at its plant and its push to secure oil marketers’ patronage.
Mr. Abiodun, whose firm was among Dangote’s first customers when it opened in April, also challenged the refinery’s claimed production capacity. Despite this significant patronage, Abiodun said Dangote imposes repeated obstacles on the firm’s transactions, making it challenging to purchase products from the refinery.Documents presented to the court also show that many oil-producing nations with far larger production and refining capacities than Dangote continue to import petroleum.
“Saudi Arabia, with five refineries and a refining capacity of 2.9 million b/d, still imports and stores refined products as part of its energy security strategy,” Abiodun pointed out.