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 Dipo Olowookere
The local stock market firmed up by 1.13 per cent on Friday as appetite for Nigerian stocks remained strong.
Investors reacted well to the 2026 budget presentation of President Bola Tinubu to the National Assembly yesterday, especially because of the more realistic crude oil benchmark of $64 per barrel compared with the ambitious $75 per barrel for 2025. This year, prices have been between $60 and $65 per barrel.
Business Post observed profit-taking in the commodity and energy sectors as they respectively shed 0.14 per cent and 0.03 per cent.
But, bargain-hunting in the others sustained the positive run, with the consumer goods index up by 3.82 per cent.
Further, the industrial goods space appreciated by 1.46 per cent, the banking counter improved by 0.08 per cent, and the insurance industry gained 0.04 per cent.
As a result, the All-Share Index (ASI) increased by 1,694.33 points to 152,057.38 points from 150,363.05 points and the market capitalisation chalked up N1.080 trillion to finish at N96.937 trillion compared with Thursday’s closing value of N95.857 trillion.
A total of 34 shares ended on the advancers’ chart, while 24 were on the laggards’ log, representing a positive market breadth index and bullish investor sentiment.
Austin Laz gained 10.00 per cent to close at N2.42, Union Dicon also jumped 10.00 per cent to N6.60, Tantalizers increased by 9.80 per cent to N2.69, Aluminium Extrusion improved by 9.78 per cent to N12.35, and Champion Breweries grew by 9.71 per cent to N16.95.
Conversely, Sovereign Trust Insurance dipped by 7.42 per cent to N3.87, Royal Exchange lost 6.84 per cent to trade at N1.77, Omatek slipped by 6.84 per cent to N1.09, Eunisell depreciated by 5.88 per cent to N80.00, and Eterna dropped 5.63 per cent to close at N28.50.
Yesterday, traders transacted 1.5 billion units worth N21.8 billion in 25,667 deals compared with the 839.8 million units sold for N32.8 billion in 23,211 deals in the preceding session, showing a surge in the trading volume by 76.61 per cent, an uptick in the number of deals by 10.58 per cent, and a shrink in the trading value by 33.54 per cent.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Three stocks stretched the bearish run of the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 1.21 per cent on Friday, December 19, with the market capitalisation giving up N26.01 billion to close at N2.121 billion compared with the N2.147 trillion it ended a day earlier, and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) dropping 43.47 points to 3,546.41 points from 3,589.88 points.
The trio of FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc, and NASD Plc overpowered the gains printed by four other securities.
FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc lost N6.00 to sell at N54.00 per unit versus N60.00 per unit, NASD Plc shrank by N3.50 to N58.50 per share from N55.00 per share, and CSCS Plc depleted by N2.91 to N33.87 per unit from N36.78 per unit.
On the flip side, Air Liquide Plc gained N1.01 to close at N13.00 per share versus N11.99 per share, Golden Capital Plc appreciated by 70 Kobo to N7.68 per unit from N6.98 per unit, Geo-Fluids Plc added 39 Kobo to sell at N5.50 per share versus N5.11 per share, and IPWA Plc rose by 8 Kobo to 85 Kobo per unit from 77 Kobo per unit.
During the trading day, market participants traded 1.9 million securities versus the previous day’s 30.5 million securities showing a decline of 49.3 per cent. The value of trades went down by 64.3 per cent to N80.3 million from N225.1 million, but the number of deals jumped by 32.1 per cent to 37 deals from 28 deals.
Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company (InfraCredit) Plc finished the session as the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 5.8 billion units valued at N16.4 billion, followed by Okitipupa Plc with 178.9 million units transacted for N9.5 billion, and MRS Oil Plc with 36.1 million units traded for N4.9 billion.
The most active stock by volume on a year-to-date basis was still InfraCredit Plc with 5.8 billion units worth N16.4 billion, trailed by Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc with 1.2 billion units sold for N420.7 million, and Impresit Bakolori Plc with 536.9 million units traded for N524.9 million.
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.
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