NNPC Renews Crude Supply Deal With Dangote Refinery

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has signed a fresh two-year crude supply agreement with the Dangote Petroleum Refinery to guarantee steady feedstock for the 650,000-barrel-per-day plant in Lekki, Lagos.

Details of the deal, which was sealed in August, show that from October 2024 to October 2025, about 82 million barrels of crude were allocated to the refinery. Of this, 49.3 million barrels — representing 60 percent — were sold in naira under the Federal Government’s Crude-for-Naira Initiative.

The arrangement comes after recent disruptions in petrol sales by the refinery, which had cited a shortage of crude-for-naira allocations before government intervention restored supplies. Under the new deal, crude cargoes will continue to be delivered in naira, with NNPC, Dangote refinery, and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority jointly reconciling volumes and costs.

So far, NNPC has allocated three crude cargoes to the refinery in August and five each for September and October. While August loading was completed, September operations are still ongoing with vessels currently at terminals for pre-loading checks.

The agreement runs until 2027 and is expected to provide greater stability for the refinery, which had at times relied on imported crude from the United States due to limited local supply.

The Steering Committee of the Domestic Crude Oil and Refined Products Sales in Local Currency Initiative, chaired by Finance Minister Wale Edun, assured that the crude-for-naira programme remains intact. The committee, which includes the Central Bank, FIRS, NNPC, Afreximbank, and Dangote representatives, pledged that Nigerians will not face disruptions in fuel supply.

Oil marketers have welcomed the development, describing it as crucial for energy security. Leaders of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria said the renewed deal would stabilise the domestic fuel market and reduce reliance on imported crude. They, however, urged the government to extend similar crude supply obligations to modular refineries to strengthen the local refining sector.

The Federal Government first introduced the naira-for-crude initiative in 2024 under President Bola Tinubu to prioritise local refineries, starting with Dangote’s facility. With the new deal in place, the refinery is set to enjoy more reliable crude supply, ensuring sustained availability of petroleum products in Nigeria.