THE Dangote Petroleum Refinery has filed a new lawsuit against Nigeria’s Attorney General in a bid to overturn fuel import licences issued to marketers and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.
News Point Nigeria reports that the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) recently issued six licences to marketers for the importation of petrol, saying imported fuel is necessary to complement domestic supplies.
Court documents seen by this newspaper show that the case seeks to nullify import permits issued to the NNPC and several oil traders.
It would be recalled that Dangote had in 2025 withdrawn a similar case against the NNPC and other marketers after the intervention of the Federal Government.
The President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, had repeatedly argued that the government should no longer permit petrol imports while his refinery tanks remain full.
In the new filing, the company is asking the Federal High Court in Lagos to set aside import permits issued or renewed by the NMDPRA, arguing that they breach an earlier order to maintain the status quo.
On the other hand, regulators and marketers have maintained that imports are needed to ensure adequate supply and prevent fuel shortages in the country.
Recently, the NMDPRA issued licences to six marketers for the importation of 720,000 metric tonnes of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol).
The marketers include NIPCO, AA Rano, Matrix, Shafa, Pinnacle, and Bono, amid claims by the regulator that Dangote Refinery now supplies over 90 per cent of Nigeria’s daily petrol consumption.
Breakdown of allocations shows NIPCO is expected to import 120,000MT; AA Rano, 150,000MT; Matrix, 150,000MT; Shafa, 120,000MT; Pinnacle, 120,000MT; and Bono, 60,000MT, totalling 720,000MT.
An official of the NMDPRA, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to comment publicly, confirmed that the import licences were issued.
However, Dangote said in the filing that the new licences undermine its operations and violate laws which allow imports only when domestic supply is insufficient.
During a recent interview with Nicolai Tangen, Dangote revealed that his refinery is now operating at 661,000 barrels per day.
He also recounted developments around the US-Iran conflict, describing its indirect effects on refinery and fertiliser operations.
Dangote said the refinery has proven its capacity by processing crude at 661,000 barrels per day, above its nameplate capacity, and operating at over 650,000 bpd.
He added that financial institutions would now be more confident in supporting the group going forward.
“The refinery has been tested. We have now processed even crude at 661,000 barrels a day. So we have demonstrated that capability,” he said.
On crude supply, Dangote stated: “We source about 56 per cent from Nigeria and some from Angola. We buy quite a bit from Angola, from Libya, and from the US. At one point, we were doing about seven to eight cargoes of WTI from the US. But we’re getting more of Nigeria’s crude now. We have to now buy 21 cargoes every month. That’s how big we are. And we’re more than doubling the refinery. In the next 30 months, we will be at 1.4 million barrels per day, which is huge.”
Aliko Dangote also spoke about what he described as a coordinated resistance against the refinery, referring to certain groups as the “Mafia”.
“The Mafia are the people who are actually benefiting because Nigeria was giving out almost $10bn every year as a subsidy. There are shippers who are making tonnes of money. There are traders who are making a lot of money buying crude and sending us refined products.
“There are also the local people, because it was subsidised, very few people are getting allocations. So they are making billions of naira. So, these are the people that did not want us to settle down because they believed that we were coming here to displace them, and of course, that’s what we have done now,” he said.