… reveals sale of 48 m barrels of crude in Naira between Oct. 2024, March 2025
Agreement records 24 m barrel shortfall – Advisors Reports
Oredola Adeola
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has announced that its six-month crude oil sale contract denominated in Naira, subject to availability, will see its first phase expire by the end of March 2025.
It noted that it has supplied over 84 million barrels of crude oil to the Dangote Refinery in Lagos, since it began operations in 2023.
The national oil company further stated that more than 48 million barrels of the crude oil were sold in Naira between October 2024 and March 2025.
Olufemi Soneye, Chief Corporate Communications Officer NNPC Ltd, made this known in a statement obtained by Advisors Reports on Monday.
This was in response to recent reports circulating on social media regarding the alleged unilateral termination of the crude oil sales agreement in Naira between NNPC and Dangote Refinery.
Meanwhile an analysis by Advisors Reports showed that under the Naira-for-Crude programme, the NNPCL should have allocated nearly 72 million barrels of crude oil to the refinery over the past six months.
However, with only 48 million barrels sold within the same period, the data reveals a shortfall of 24 million barrels.
Soneye in the statement on Monday, explained that the contract for the sale of crude oil in Naira was structured as a six-month agreement, subject to availability, and expires at the end of March 2025.
He added that discussions are currently ongoing towards implementing another six-month contract.
He said, “Under this arrangement, NNPC has made over 48 million barrels of crude oil available to Dangote Refinery since October 2024.
“In aggregate, NNPC has made over 84 million barrels of crude oil available to the Refinery since its commencement of operations in 2023.”
The NNPC Limited spokesperson restated the commitment of the company to supplying crude oil for local refining based on mutually agreed terms and conditions.
Recall that the Technical Sub-Committee on the Naira-for-Crude programme, headed by Zacch Adedeji, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), was inaugurated on October 1, 2024, allowing local refineries, including Dangote Refinery, to purchase crude oil in naira instead of dollars.
“The objectives of the Committee were to oversee the implementation of the naira-for-crude deal, ensuring compliance with the Domestic Crude Oil Obligations, and facilitating discussions for new contracts.
The Committee during the approval of the initiative, confirmed that local refineries would be allocated 450,000 barrels of crude oil per day with the Dangote refinery receiving 385,000 bpd (or 12 million barrels per month).
Adedeji, Chairman of the Technical Sub-Committee on the Naira-for-Crude programme, in a statement released on Mondy explained that the policy framework allowing the sale of crude oil in Naira for domestic refining remains in effect.
His statement comes in response to recent speculation about the alleged termination of the agreement between the NNPCL and Dangote Refinery.
Adedeji emphasized that there has been no policy decision to discontinue the initiative, which was introduced to ensure supply stability and maximize local refining capacity.
He mentioned that after months of implementation, the policy has proven effective and will continue to support the economy.
He further dismissed claims of exclusion, noting that the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) actively enforces compliance with the Domestic Crude Oil Obligations under the Petroleum Industry Act.
Kelvin Emmanuel, energy expert, in an analysis shared via his X handle, has urged the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to disclose the term sheet detailing the supply of 84 million barrels of crude oil to the Dangote Refinery since 2023.
He questioned the transparency of the deal, particularly the ratio of crude allocated under the Naira-based offtake versus USD transactions.
Emmanuel alleged that the Naira-based crude offtake dropped at the end of January from a range of 61,290 to 83,333 barrels per day.
He also noted that in February, NNPC allocated 2.5 million barrels, averaging 83,000 barrels per day—falling short by 301,000 barrels of the 385,000 barrels per day initially promised under the Naira-based crude swap.
He therefore explained that the March allocation of 1.9 million barrels, translating to 63,000 barrels per day, was 321,000 barrels below the agreed volume.
