The Dangote Petroleum Refinery, alongside other modular refineries in Nigeria, may spend approximately $1.4 billion monthly on crude oil imports to achieve full operational capacity in the coming six months. This estimate suggests a total expenditure of about $8.56 billion over the period, based on an estimated importation of 122.4 million barrels of crude oil.
The financial burden comes amid uncertainty surrounding the sustainability of the naira-for-crude policy, which involves the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) and Dangote refinery. Additionally, concerns over the Domestic Crude Supply Obligation of the Federal Government are also contributing to the challenges faced by the refineries.
This development follows a missed meeting that was initially scheduled on Monday between the Technical Sub-Committee on the Naira-for-Crude Policy, Dangote refinery, and other government officials. According to insiders, the meeting was postponed due to incomplete work by the Nigerian Petroleum Upstream Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), and it is expected to be rescheduled before the upcoming Sallah break.
The uncertainty surrounding the policy and crude supply obligations has put additional pressure on the refineries as they seek to secure enough crude oil to meet operational demands.
