Economy
NLC Urges FG to Sell Crude in Naira for Lower Fuel Prices
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The federal government has been urged to consider selling crude in Naira to private refinery like Dangote Petroleum Refinery to allow Nigerians enjoy lower fuel prices.
This appeal was made by the Lagos State Chapter of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) when its officials visited Dangote Refinery in Lagos recently.
The labour union commended the oil facility owned by Mr Aliko Dangote, describing it as a transformative national asset, capable of bridging Nigeria’s fuel supply gap, boosting employment, and restoring public confidence in the country’s industrial capacity.
It asked the government to prioritise the sale of crude oil to the Dangote Refinery in Naira, arguing that forcing the company to import crude or purchase locally in dollars undermines the promise of lower fuel prices for ordinary Nigerians.
The chairman of the chapter, Ms Funmi Sessi, said, “Today, we have seen the massive Dangote Refinery project, as well as the fertiliser plant. We have also observed some of Dangote’s other investments in this axis. It is truly enormous and highly impressive.
“I believe what we have seen is a clear effort to bridge the gap in the availability of essential products in the country and to create job opportunities for Nigerians and others as well as industrialise the country.”
The union acknowledged that following the federal government’s removal of petrol subsidies, Nigerians experienced an unprecedented surge in the cost of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS). However, the entrance of Dangote Petroleum Refinery into the market helped to stabilise prices.
“It wasn’t until Dangote came into the picture that we started seeing some relief. His intervention significantly crashed the escalated prices of PMS and other refined products. That’s a clear demonstration of private sector leadership,” she stated.
“This country has crude oil in abundance. So, why is Dangote still being made to import crude or pay for it in hard currency?” the NLC queried, noting, “If the government is truly committed to reducing fuel prices and supporting local refining, it must sell crude oil to Dangote in Naira.”
The union stressed that sourcing crude locally in local currency would significantly lower operational costs and, by extension, lead to a more sustainable reduction in fuel prices.
“With a daily capacity of 650,000 barrels, this refinery can serve Nigeria and even the West African sub-region. We also see big ships taking fertilisers to other countries. The government must maximise,” the NLC stated.
The group further said, “When government-owned refineries failed, one man stepped up. Aliko Dangote didn’t just make promises; he fulfilled them. He has proven that Nigeria can not only refine its own products but also meet international quality standards.”
The union also hailed the refinery’s production of Euro 5-compliant fuel, which features significantly reduced sulphur content, aligning with international environmental standards and boosting Nigeria’s credibility in the global petroleum market.
“This is the kind of pride we want to see — a Nigerian company producing at global standards. It is changing the narrative and elevating Nigeria’s position globally. It’s time the government supports and maximises the capacity of this asset.”
In addition to fuel, the NLC noted the group’s fertiliser company, which is already exporting to international markets. It urged the government to leverage these capabilities to enhance food security and reduce dependence on imported agricultural inputs.
In his remarks, the Vice President for Oil and Gas at Dangote Industries Limited, Mr Devakumar Edwin, said the planned deployment of 4,000 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG)-powered trucks to support the distribution of refined petroleum products across Nigeria is aimed at ensuring that the benefits of domestic refining and the resulting reduction in fuel prices are fully passed on to Nigerian consumers.
Mr Edwin stated that the introduction of the CNG-powered fleet is a strategic step to reduce logistics costs in fuel distribution — a major factor in the final pump price.
“The deployment of these 4,000 CNG-powered trucks will help us pass down the benefits of domestic refining and the reduction in product prices to consumers,” Mr Edwin said. “The aim is to support logistics and make distribution more efficient, not to displace any existing players in the sector.”
He further explained that the use of CNG-powered trucks, in addition to being more environmentally friendly, will significantly reduce transportation expenses, ultimately making refined products more affordable for Nigerians.
Mr Edwin also highlighted the wider impact of Dangote’s industrial ventures, particularly in stimulating competition and growth in key sectors of the Nigerian economy. He cited the Dangote Sugar Refinery as an example, noting that its success paved the way for other companies, including BUA Group and Nigerian Flour Mills to invest in sugar production.
“We’ve seen it with sugar, and we’ve seen it with cement. The success of Dangote Cement led to the emergence of players like BUA, Mangal, and the expansion of Lafarge,” he said. “In the same way, the success of this refinery will drive the emergence of more private refineries in Nigeria.”
According to him, the Dangote Refinery is not only helping to address Nigeria’s long-standing reliance on imported refined products but is also setting the pace for a sustainable and competitive refining industry that will benefit the broader economy.
He noted that the Dangote Group has become a nurturing ground for Nigerian engineers, scientists and technicians, many of whom have gone on to work as expatriates in various countries. He assured the labour leaders of the company’s steadfast commitment to human capital development, staff welfare, and the overall wellbeing of the economy, emphasising that Aliko Dangote is a patriotic Nigerian fully dedicated to the nation’s progress.
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was not a good day for the Nigerian Naira at the two major foreign exchange (FX) market on Friday as it suffered a heavy loss against the United States Dollar at the close of transactions.
In the black market segment, the Naira weakened against its American counterpart yesterday by N10 to quote at N1,485/$1, in contrast to the N1,475/$1 it was traded a day earlier, and at the GTBank forex counter, it depreciated by N2 to settle at N1,467/$1 versus Thursday’s closing price of N1,465/$1.
In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) window, which is also the official market, the nation’s legal tender crashed against the greenback by N6.65 or 0.46 per cent to close at N1,464.49/$1 compared with the preceding session’s rate of N1,457.84/$1.
In the same vein, the local currency tumbled against the Euro in the spot market by N2.25 to sell for N1,714.63/€1 compared with the previous day’s N1,712.38/€1, but appreciated against the Pound Sterling by 73 Kobo to finish at N1,957.30/£1 compared with the N1,958.03/£1 it was traded in the preceding session.
The market continues to face seasonal pressure even as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is still conducting FX intervention sales, which have significantly reduced but not remove pressure from the Naira. Also, there seems to be reduced supply from exporters, foreign portfolio investors and non-bank corporate inflows.
President Bola Tinubu on Friday presented the government’s N58.47 trillion budget plan aimed at consolidating economic reforms and boosting growth.
The budget is based on a projected crude oil price of $64.85 a barrel and includes a target oil output of 1.84 million barrels a day. It also projects an exchange rate of N1,400 to the Dollar.
President Tinubu said inflation had plunged to an annual rate of 14.45 per cent in November from 24.23 per cent in March, while foreign reserves had surged to a seven-year high of $47 billion.
Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market was dominated by the bulls but it continues to face increased pressure after million in liquidations in previous session over accelerating declines, with Dogecoin (DOGE) recovering 4.2 per cent to trade at $0.1309.
Further, Ripple (XRP) appreciated by 3.9 per cent to $1.90, Cardano (ADA) rose by 3.5 per cent to $0.3728, Solana (SOL) jumped by 3.4 per cent to $126.23, Ethereum (ETH) climbed by 2.9 per cent to $2,982.42, Binance Coin (BNB) gained 2.0 per cent to sell for $853.06, Bitcoin (BTC) improved by 1.7 per cent to $88,281.21, and Litecoin (LTC) soared by 1.2 per cent to $76.50, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 each.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Crude oil prices edged up on possible disruptions from a US blockade of Venezuelan tankers as the market waits for news about a possible Russia-Ukraine peace deal.
Brent futures rose 65 cents or 1.1 per cent to $60.47 per barrel while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures expanded by 51 cents or 0.9 per cent to $56.66 per barrel. Both Brent and WTI were down about 1 per cent this week after both crude benchmarks fell about 4 per cent last week.
US President Donald Trump said he was leaving the possibility of war with Venezuela on the table, noting that there would be additional seizures of oil tankers near Venezuelan waters after the US seized a sanctioned oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela last week.
The American President this week ordered a “blockade” of all sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela, in the US’ latest move to increase pressure on Nicolas Maduro’s government, targeting its main source of income. The pressure campaign on President Maduro has included a ramped-up military presence in the region and more than two dozen military strikes on vessels in the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea near Venezuela, which have killed at least 90 people.
President Trump has also previously said that US land strikes on the South American country will soon start.
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday said that the US is not concerned about an escalation with Russia when it comes to Venezuela, as the Trump administration builds up military forces in the Caribbean.
This development comes as President Trump seeks an end to the unending war between Ukraine and Russia that is heading towards its fourth year.
European Union leaders decided on Friday to borrow cash to loan 90 billion Euros to Ukraine to fund its defense against Russia for the next two years as Russian President Vladimir Putin offered no compromise on Friday on his terms for ending the war in Ukraine and accused the European Union of attempting “daylight robbery” of Russian assets.
Ukraine, meanwhile, struck a Russian “shadow fleet” oil tanker in the Mediterranean Sea with aerial drones for the first time.
Earlier this week, the US and Ukraine both signaled progress in negotiations about a peace agreement during talks in German capital city of Berlin. The US is now reportedly offering Ukraine security guarantees modeled on NATO’s Article 5 mutual defense pledge.
By Adedapo Adesanya
President Bola Tinubu on Friday presented a budget proposal of N58.47 trillion for the 2026 fiscal year titled Budget of Consolidation, Renewed Resilience and Shared Prosperity to a joint session of the National Assembly, with capital recurrent (non‑debt) expenditure standing at 15.25 trillion, and the capital expenditure at N26.08 trillion, while the crude oil benchmark was pegged at $64.85 per barrel.
Business Post reports that the Brent crude grade currently trades around $60 per barrel. It is also expected to trade at that level or lower next year over worries about oil glut.
At the budget presentation today, Mr Tinubu said the expected total revenue for the year is N34.33 trillion, and the proposal is anchored on a crude oil production of 1.84 million barrels per day, and an exchange rate of N1,400 to the US Dollar.
In terms of sectoral allocation, defence and security took the lion’s share with N5.41 trillion, followed by infrastructure at N3.56 trillion, education received N3.52 trillion, while health received N2.48 trillion.
Addressing the lawmakers, the President described the budget proposal as not “just accounting lines”.
“They are a statement of national priorities,” the president told the gathering. “We remain firmly committed to fiscal sustainability, debt transparency, and value‑for‑money spending.”
The presentation came at a time of heightened insecurity in parts of the country, with mass abductions and other crimes making headlines.
Outlining his government’s plan to address the challenge, President Tinubu reminded the gathering that security “remains the foundation of development”.
He said some of the measures in place to tame insecurity include the modernisation of the Armed Forces, intelligence‑driven policing and joint operations, border security, and technology‑enabled surveillance and community‑based peacebuilding and conflict prevention.
“We will invest in security with clear accountability for outcomes—because security spending must deliver security results,” the president said.
“To secure our country, our priority will remain on increasing the fighting capability of our armed forces and other security agencies by boosting personnel and procuring cutting-edge platforms and other hardware,” he added.
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