Economy
Oil-Producing Communities Urge FG to End Petrol, Diesel Importation
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The federal government has been urged to put an end to the importation of premium motor spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, and automated gas oil (AGO), otherwise known as diesel, because it is putting the nation at the mercy of some oil cartels and international oil companies (IOCs).
This appeal was made by a group known as the Host Communities of Nigeria Producing Oil and Gas (HOSTCOM) over the weekend.
The association was reacting to the recent development involving the lamentation of Africa’s richest man, Mr Aliko Dangote, who claimed that IOCs were frustrating the operations of his $20 billion refinery in Lagos.
HOSTCOM lamented that despite the billions of dollars spent on turnaround maintenance of Nigeria’s refineries, the country remains reliant on importing refined products.
This persistent issue, it argues, highlights the widespread corruption within Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, allegedly orchestrated by influential cabals who are intent on maintaining the status quo of exporting crude oil while importing refined petroleum products, warning that it will not hesitate to publicly name these identified cabals if necessary.
It threatened to renew agitation for greater autonomy and control of its natural resources if the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited and the IOCs fail to sell and supply crude oil to Dangote Refinery and other local refineries in their bid to ensure that Nigeria becomes self-sufficient in the local production of petroleum products.
The National President of HOSTCOM, Mr Benjamin Tamaramiebi, accompanied by his executives and traditional rulers from the Niger Delta region, during a tour of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery & Petrochemicals and the Dangote Fertiliser Limited complex in Lagos, also called for the removal of the chief executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Mr Farouk Ahmed, over his recent statement that the government would not halt the importation of refined petroleum products.
“Our visit today to the largest and magnificent 650,000 bpd private refinery in Africa (Dangote Refinery) has opened our eyes to several ills, particularly the monumental corruption going on in the Nigerian oil and gas industry,” Mr Tamaramiebi said.
“It is obvious why the existing federal government refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna can never work or operate maximally despite the billions of dollars spent on so-called turn-around maintenance (TAM) over the years.
“It is now clear that some persons in government and outside government have been identified as the cabal holding Nigeria’s oil sector by the jugular. We have identified them, and we shall reveal their names to the people of Nigeria if this trend continues,” he added.
Mr Tamaramiebi called on President Bola Tinubu to support and sustain Dangote Refinery, advising him to “do away with the cabals holding the oil sector to ransom,” emphasising that the government must not tolerate the economic sabotage being carried out by the IOCs operating in Nigeria, which have refused to sell crude oil to the Dangote Refinery and other modular refineries.
“We call on Mr President to direct NNPC or NNPCL to compel the IOCs operating in our communities to sell and supply crude oil to Dangote Refinery and other local refineries in line with Section 109 of the Petroleum Industry Act PIA 2021, particularly Section 109(4)(b), which states that “the supply of crude oil shall be commercially negotiated between the lessee and the crude oil refining licensee, having regard to the prevailing international market price for similar grades of crude oil.”
In his remarks, the Vice President for Oil and Gas at Dangote Industries Limited, Mr Devakumar Edwin, in his remarks, explained that the refinery was established primarily to source and refine local crudes for the benefit of Nigeria while also exporting excess production to boost the economy.
He noted that the lack of sufficient Nigerian crude supplies has necessitated importing crude from other countries and continents, adding that if the refinery had not been designed to process a wide range of crudes, including various African and Middle Eastern crudes as well as US Light Tight Oil, it would have become inactive due to the lack of Nigerian crude supplies.
By Dipo Olowookere
About 0.04 per cent was recovered on Friday from the loss recorded by the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) the previous due to profit-taking.
Yesterday, investors were in the market with renewed vigour, mopping up stocks trading at relatively cheaper prices.
According to data, the insurance counter gained 0.41 per cent, the banking sector appreciated by 0.38 per cent, and the consumer goods index grew by 0.14 per cent.
The gains achieved by these three sectors were enough to lift Customs Street at the close of business despite the 0.26 per cent decline printed by the industrial goods segment and the 0.14 per cent loss suffered by the energy industry. The commodity counter was flat during the session.
A total of 43 equities gained weight on the last trading day of this week, while 26 equities shed weight, indicating a positive market breadth index and strong investor sentiment.
Red Star Express increased its share price by 10.00 per cent to N13.20, NCR Nigeria grew by 9.97 per cent to N128.55, SCOA Nigeria inflated by 9.96 per cent to N14.90, Omatek appreciated by 9.94 per cent to N1.77, and Deap Capital expanded by 9.85 per cent to N4.46.
On the flip side, McNichols decreased by 8.81 per cent to N6.00, Legend Internet crumbled by 7.56 per cent to N5.50, Cornerstone Insurance crashed by 6.48 per cent to N6.35, C&I Leasing contracted by 6.29 per cent to N8.20, and Austin Laz slipped by 5.78 per cent to N3.75.
Yesterday, 539.9 million shares valued at N16.7 billion were transacted in 48,023 deals versus the 1.0 billion shares worth N31.6 billion executed in 51,227 deals in the preceding day, implying a shrink in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 46.01 per cent, 47.15 per cent, and 6.26 per cent apiece.
Zenith Bank was the most active for the day with 54.6 million stocks sold for N3.8 billion, Jaiz Bank traded 41.5 million units worth N359.4 million, Secure Electronic Technology transacted 37.7 million units valued at N39.2 million, Access Holdings exchanged 30.5 million units for N699.2 million, and Lasaco Assurance transacted 27.2 million units worth N68.3 million.
When the market closed for the day, the All-Share Index (ASI) went up by 72.21 points to 166,129.50 points from 166,057.29 points and the market capitalisation gained N31 billion to N106.354 trillion from N106.323 trillion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was a positive ending for the Naira this week after it further appreciated against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Friday, January 16 by N1.33 or 0.09 per cent to sell for N1,417.95/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,419.28/$1.
The domestic currency also gained N2.41 against the Euro in the official market to close at N1,647.51/€1 versus the preceding session’s closing price of N1,649.92/€1, however, it suffered a N7.97 loss against the Pound Sterling in the same market window to trade at N1,901.32/£1, in contrast to Thursday’s closing price of N1,893.35/£1.
In the same vein, the Nigerian Naira depleted against the Dollar at the GTBank FX counter by N2 to quote at N1,427/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,425/$1, but strengthened against the greenback at the black market yesterday by N5 to settle at N1,485/$1 versus the N1,490/$1 it was exchanged a day earlier.
Improved supply conditions helped keep the market within range as exporters’ and importers’ inflows in addition to non-bank corporate supply enhanced liquidity as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) made no visible intervention.
Stronger external inflows from foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) and improving current account dynamics, continue to align with structural support in the wider economy.
Nigeria has seen projections of a stronger economic or gross domestic product (GDP) growth and lower inflation in 2026, with these forecasts citing improved macroeconomic fundamentals and reform impacts.
As for the cryptocurrency market, it was mixed following selloff in precious metals and lower US stocks appeared to be denting crypto sentiment.
Gold and silver, both of which also enjoyed big rallies earlier this week, tumbled 1.2 per cent and 5 per cent, respectively while key US stock indexes — the Nasdaq, S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average — all reversed from early gains to modest losses in Friday trade.
Dogecoin (DOGE) shrank by 2.2 per cent to $0.1370, Ripple (XRP) slipped by 0.8 per cent to $2.05, Ethereum (ETH) went down by 0.7 per cent to $3,228.56, and Bitcoin (BTC) slumped by 0.6 per cent to $95,086.80.
Conversely, Litecoin (LTC) appreciated by 3.2 per cent to $74.48, Solana (SOL) rose by 0.4 per cent to $143.70, Cardano (ADA) jumped by 0.2 per cent to $0.3942, and Binance Coin (BNB) increased by 0.1 per cent to $935.88, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 each.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Oil prices settled higher amid lingering worries about a possible US military strike against Iran, a decision that may still occur over the weekend.
Brent crude settled at $64.13 a barrel after going up by 37 cents or 0.58 per cent and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude finished at $59.44 a barrel after it gained 25 cents or 0.42 per cent.
The US Navy’s aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln was expected to arrive in the Persian Gulf next week after operating in the South China Sea.
Market analysts noted that it doesn’t seem likely anything will happen soon. However, the weekends have become the perfect time for actions so as not offset the markets.
The market had risen after protests flared up in Iran and US President Donald Trump signalled the potential for military strikes, but lost over 4 per cent on Thursday as the American president said Iran’s crackdown on the protesters was easing, allaying concerns of possible military action that could disrupt oil supplies.
Iran produces approximately 3.2 million barrels per day, accounting for roughly 4 per cent of global crude production, so it was not a coincidence that markets rallied sharply through Tuesday and Wednesday as President Trump canceled meetings with Iranian officials and posted that “help is on its way” to Iranian protesters, raising fears of potential US military strikes that sent prices surging toward multi-month highs.
Weighing against those fears are potential supply increases from Venezuela.
The Trump administration is exploring plans to swap heavy Venezuelan crude for US medium sour barrels that can actually go straight into Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) caverns, since not all all oil belongs in the reserve.
According to Reuters, the Department of Energy is considering moving Venezuelan heavy crude into commercial storage at the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port, while US producers deliver medium sour crude into the SPR in exchange.
Analysts expect higher supply this year, potentially creating a ceiling for the geopolitical risk premium on prices.
Some investors covered short positions ahead of the three-day Martin Luther King holiday weekend in the US.
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