The Centre for Transparency Advocacy (CTA) has raised concerns over the ownership stake of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) in the Dangote Refinery, following recent statements by Aliko Dangote indicating NNPC no longer holds a 20% stake in the project.
In a statement issued on Monday, the Executive Director of CTA, Faith Nwadishi, called on NNPC to provide clarity on the ownership situation of the refinery.
Nwadishi highlighted the discrepancy between Dangote’s recent remarks and previous agreements and public statements regarding NNPC’s involvement in the refinery.
According to Dangote, “The agreement was actually 20% which we had with NNPC and they did not pay the balance of the money up till last year and then we gave them another extension up till June (2024) and they said that they would remain where they have already paid which is 7.2%. So, NNPC, the government owns only 7.2%, not 20%”.
She said, “We may recall that in 2021, Mele Kyari, the Group Managing Director of NNPC stated that “the decision to own a stake in the refinery was driven by the profit potential of the refinery business and the need to have a say in the of this magnitude., which borders on energy security for Nigeria and Africa, with huge implications for fiscal security of the country”. One wonders what happened to this enthusiasm and the fiscal implications of this failure to the national economy and its ability to booster revenue? ”
Nwadishi urged NNPC to disclose its current ownership status in the Dangote Refinery, provide details on any related contracts or transactions, and explain any changes to its ownership structure.
