Nigeria’s oil sector is facing intense scrutiny as energy expert Kelvin Emmanuel slams the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) for serious underperformance. He’s calling for a complete overhaul to improve efficiency and transparency, suggesting that the current structure is costing the country dearly. Buckle up, because this is a wild ride!
Here’s what’s at stake:
- NNPC’s alleged underperformance and lack of transparency.
- Continued fuel importation despite claims of functional refineries.
- A call for the President to fire NNPC’s management and board.
- Debates about Nigeria’s actual crude oil production and usage.
- Dangote Refinery’s potential to meet Nigeria’s fuel demands.
NNPC: A Broken System?
Economist Kelvin Emmanuel isn’t holding back. He’s raising serious questions about why Nigeria is still importing fuel when the government claims the country’s refineries are up and running. The ongoing legal battle between Dangote and NNPC only adds fuel to the fire. Emmanuel insists that only drastic measures can fix the problem.
Time for a Clean Sweep
“NNPC needs a complete overhaul!” Emmanuel declared. “The President needs to fire the entire management and board, replace them with competent leadership, and restructure the organization. The vertical monopoly NNPC runs is depriving the federal government of revenues that should be funding the budget and improving the lives of Nigerians.”
The Crude Oil Conundrum
Emmanuel is also hitting hard on NNPC’s crude oil lifting practices, revealing that the company has structured billions in forex transactions and committed hundreds of millions of barrels of Nigeria’s crude to repaying international creditors since 2019. He claims that Nigeria is producing less oil than officially stated, leaving Dangote Refinery struggling for supply. According to the expert, it is critical to understand that while the government claims of producing 1.7 million barrels per day, Nigeria is actually producing 1.53 million barrels per day.
Fuel Import Shenanigans
Transparency is the name of the game, but Emmanuel suggests NNPC is playing a different tune. He questions the decision-making process regarding fuel importation, pointing out that billions of liters of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) have been imported since October 2024, even with refineries supposedly working.
Questionable Quality?
Emmanuel also raises concerns about the quality of imported petrol, suggesting that Nigeria is importing low-grade petrol at cheap prices without proper audits. He argues that the regulator, NNDPR, isn’t doing its job in enforcing pricing frameworks and mechanisms.
Dangote Refinery to the Rescue?
Emmanuel believes the Dangote Refinery holds the key to Nigeria’s fuel independence. He argues that it has the capacity to supply the entire Nigerian market with PMS, diesel, and Jet A1 at full capacity, achieving higher yields than NNPC. If this is true, the government’s crude oil swaps and vendor financing programmes deny Nigeria the revenues needed to finance its budget.
Nigeria’s Consumption vs. Production
Emmanuel claims that Dangote Refinery is already producing over 42 million liters of PMS daily, while Nigeria’s actual consumption is around 32 million liters per day. “If the government claims otherwise, let them provide empirical evidence to prove that they don’t,” he challenges.
NNPC: Time to Exit the Stage?
Emmanuel argues that NNPC should exit the refining and petrol station business, stating, “The vertical monopoly NNPC runs simply means that they are taking revenues from upstream which belongs to the government of Nigeria… and it has little or nothing to remit to the federal government of Nigeria to fund its budget, which is actually affecting the lives of Nigerians.”
Additional Information
NNPC has been under scrutiny for decades regarding corruption and inefficency. Many view it as a symbol of corruption and mismanagement. The Dangote Refinery has a capacity of refining 650,000 barrels of crude oil per day, making it Africa’s largest oil refinery and the largest single-train refinery in the world.