- ERAN has criticised NNPCL’s leadership for failing to reduce fuel imports despite promises to prioritise local refineries.
- The group also condemned recent management changes at NNPCL, calling them a superficial move amid growing public dissatisfaction.
The Energy Reforms Advocates of Nigeria (ERAN) have expressed concerns over the growing importation of petroleum products in the country despite Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) assuring that it would phase out imports and focus on local refineries. The group criticised the leadership of Nigeria’s energy sector, labelling recent changes within NNPCL as superficial.
In a recent statement, Robinson Onuh, the Executive Director of ERAN, pointed out the disparity between NNPCL’s public statements and its actions. Onuh’s comments follow the recent removal of Umar Ajiya and Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan from their positions as Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President (Upstream) of NNPCL. The shakeup, announced on Wednesday, November 20, 2024, was framed by NNPCL to enhance corporate governance and operational efficiency.
Onuh, however, dismissed the leadership changes as a mere “face-saving” measure by NNPCL’s Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO), Mele Kyari, amid growing calls for his resignation. “This is cheating and to be clever by half,” Onuh said, blaming Kyari, Farouk Ahmed of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and Engr. Gbenga Komolafe of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) is responsible for the sector’s ongoing challenges. Onuh accused NNPCL of “playing politics with people’s lives and the nation’s economy.”
Onuh also referenced a report that revealed Nigeria imported 1.5 million metric tonnes of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), 414,018 metric tonnes of diesel, and 13,500 metric tonnes of aviation fuel between October 1 and November 11, 2024. These imports amounted to over 2 billion litres of petrol, 500 million litres of diesel, and 17 million litres of jet fuel, costing nearly N3 trillion.
“The Dangote Refinery and the nation’s refineries remain comatose despite the government’s trillions of naira invested in them,” Onuh said.
In response, NNPCL spokesperson Olufemi Soneye stated on November 14, 2024, clarifying that Kyari’s remarks had been misinterpreted. According to Soneye, Kyari prioritised local refinery usage rather than an outright cessation of fuel imports.