3 weeks ago
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President Bola Tinubu, on Tuesday, commended the Implementation Committee on the Naira-based sales of crude oil and refined products.
He asked the members to resolve any teething problems, insisting that the government “will not go back to the old way of doing things.”
Tinubu gave the charge during a review meeting at the State House, Abuja.
The Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, revealed the outcome of the meeting in a statement he signed on Tuesday titled ‘President Tinubu assures of more stability in the oil sector with naira for crude transactions, urges stakeholders to uphold the interest of the nation.’
Tinubu argued that using the Naira was conceived to remove the exchange rate hurdle.
“Whatever solution we proffer in crude oil and refined products sales in Naira should not take us back to our experience in the last 40 years.
“There can be cost and revenue adjustment in the oil sector, but the issue is that the government will not have to go back to the old way of doing things,’’ the President stated.
Tinubu said the various players in the oil sector, including the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Ltd and the Dangote Refinery, should work to improve the economy and the livelihood of Nigerians.
He urged stakeholders to look inward and consider supplying enough petrol and petroleum products for local consumption to stop the persistent reliance on importation.
According to Tinubu, this would enable the channelling of foreign exchange into the development of the real sector.
The President also advised stakeholders to use Afreximbank as a settlement bank to resolve the Naira pricing for crude and refined products. Afreximbank is already on board as the financial adviser.
“The market must determine what we are doing. Once you allow the market to determine the profit and loss, independent marketers and the government side can meet on the worksheet.
“I want the issues resolved without future waste of time,’’ he added.
The President continued, “We can have energy security, and the motivation for Alhaji Aliko Dangote will not be defeated.
“It will be more predictable on a medium and long-term basis.”
On his part, the Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, assured Tinubu that the administration’s groundbreaking steps to sell crude in Naira would not be reversed.
Edun said the government would not be involved in determining the rate of exchange for the oil sector.
Meanwhile, the President and Chief Executive Officer of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, told the President that the refinery had more than 500 million litres of fuel in reserve after supplying 400 million to the economy.
He said the refinery could collaborate with the other refineries managed by NNPC Ltd to meet an estimated 32 million litres of local petrol needs.
At the meeting, the Federal Inland Revenue Service boss, Zach Adedeji, who chairs the technical committee, said importing refined products should end once we have the capacity to produce enough to meet domestic needs.
“The vision of Mr President is to turn Nigeria into a hub for refined products to export to the world,” said Adedeji.
Other stakeholders at the meeting included the President and Chairman of the Board of Afrexim Bank, Prof. Benedict Oramah, the minister of budget and economic planning, Abubakar Bagudu, and Group CEO of NNPC Limited, Mr Mele Kyari.
The president’s special adviser on energy, Olu Verheijen, and the CEOs of NIMASA and Nigerian Ports Authority also attended the meeting along with the head of Upstream Regulator, Gbenga Komolafe, and head of Midstream & Downstream Regulator, Farouk Ahmed.
