The Dangote Group has addressed recent reports claiming it sold Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) for N898 per liter, calling the claims “misleading and malicious.”
In a statement from Anthony Chiejina, Chief Branding and Communication Officer of Dangote Group, the company did not disclose the exact price it sold the product to the NNPCL but confirmed it was sold in dollars.
The NNPCL’s Chief Spokesperson, Olufemi Soneye, clarified the situation in an interview with Daily Trust. He disputed an earlier claim that the product was sold at N760 per liter, as reported by another outlet, and confirmed that the initial price from the refinery was N898 per liter.
“We successfully loaded PMS at the Dangote Refinery today. The claim that we purchased it at N760 per liter is incorrect. For this initial loading, the price from the refinery was N898 per liter,” Soneye said.
However, Dangote’s statement urged the public to disregard the N898 figure, stating that the official petrol price will be determined by a committee appointed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and the announcement will be made on October 1, 2024.
The statement emphasized, “This information is misleading and aims to detract from the significant progress made on September 15, 2024, in addressing Nigeria’s long-standing energy challenges. The Technical Sub-Committee on Naira-based crude sales to local refineries, appointed by President Tinubu, will officially announce the pricing on October 1, 2024.”
It further noted that the current crude supply for the refinery was bought in dollars. Despite the pricing controversy, Dangote sold the product to NNPCL at a competitive rate compared to imported fuel.
The company reassured Nigerians that there would be an ample supply of quality petroleum products across all regions of the country, promising that the days of fuel scarcity would soon end.
