The management of Dangote Petroleum Refinery has temporarily halted the sale of petrol, diesel and other petroleum products in Naira.
In a statement on Wednesday, the company said the decision is necessary to avoid a “mismatch between our sales proceeds and our crude oil purchase obligations, which are currently denominated in U.S. dollars.
It said “to date, our sales of petroleum products in Naira have exceeded the value of Naira-denominated crude we have received.
“As a result, we must temporarily adjust our sales currency to align with our crude procurement currency.”
The company assured that it would revert the decision “as soon as we receive an allocation of Naira-denominated crude cargoes from NNPC, we will promptly resume petroleum product sales in Naira.”
Experts expressed fears that this may lead to increment in pump prices of petrol and diesel.
Dangote Petroleum Refinery, however, dissociated itself from reports on the internet, claiming that it is stopping loading due to an incident of ticketing fraud.
“This is a malicious falsehood. Our systems are robust and we have had no fraud issues.
“We remain committed to serving the Nigerian market efficiently and sustainably.
“We appreciate your understanding and cooperation during this period,” the statement said.
