Flood: President Tinubu arrives in

President Bola Tinubu has arrived in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, to commiserate with the government and people of the state over the recent flood disaster.

In the North West state, the President, who arrived in Abuja on Sunday night from London, would evaluate the impact of the flood on residential houses, hospitals, markets, schools, and other public facilities.

In a video seen by our correspondent on X, the president’s aircraft landed at the Maiduguri International Airport and was received by Governor Babagana Zulum and other government officials.

The National Emergency Management Agency said nearly half of Maiduguri was submerged in water after the Alau Dam, a critical infrastructure designed to regulate water flow and provide irrigation and drinking water, overflowed its seams following heavy rainfall, which led to the town’s worst flooding in 30 years, according to the United Nations Human Rights Refugee Council and Maiduguri Metropolitan Council residents.

According to NEMA, more than 23,000 households have been hit by the rapid rise of waters following the weekend rupture of the Alau dam on the Ngadda River, 20km south of Maiduguri.

Reports also indicate the water had receded as of Wednesday after 70 per cent of Maiduguri was submerged by the fast-moving waters, according to NEMA, which ravaged major city locations, including the palace of the Shehu of Borno, Umar Ibn Garbai El-Kanemi; the state secretariat, post office, cemetery, and the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital.

The flood also washed away 80 per cent of the animals at the Sanda Kyarimi Park Zoo and damaged houses, schools, as well as commercial and worship centres.

President Tinubu had earlier expressed deep concerns over the flooding and tasked relevant government agencies to expedite rescue efforts. He also called for the immediate evacuation of residents in communities overtaken by floods.

The nation’s oil firm stated that it is paying the Dangote refinery in United States dollars for the September 2024 petrol offtake, adding that Naira transactions will only commence on October 1st, 2024.

The Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited has released another version of the breakdown of the estimated price of petrol bought from the Dangote refinery.

Society Reporters had earlier reported that in a statement on Monday morning, the NNPC gave a chart breakdown of the refined petrol product it bought from the refinery on Sunday, September 15.

The nation’s oil firm stated that it is paying the Dangote refinery in United States dollars for the September 2024 petrol offtake, adding that Naira transactions will only commence on October 1st, 2024.

The statement reads, “The NNPC Ltd. has released estimated prices of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as Petrol (obtained from the Dangote Refinery) in its retail stations across the country.

The estimated prices are based on negotiated terms between NNPC Ltd. and Dangote Refinery which recognise the current international gasoline prices and the prevailing foreign exchange rate in line with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021.

“The NNPC Ltd. can confirm that it is paying Dangote Refinery in USD for September 2024 PMS offtake, as Naira transactions will only commence on October 1st, 2024.

We reassure Nigerians that any discount from the Dangote Refinery will be passed on 100% to the general public.”

While the data of the estimated price to be sold around the country remains the same, the analysis of the transaction it had with Dangote Refinery was altered.

While the first press statement on Monday had a Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority fee of ₦8.99, the second statement showed ₦4.495.

The first statement had an inspection fee of ₦0.97, a margin fee of ₦26.48 and a distribution fee of ₦15.

In the second statement on Monday, there were no inspection and margin fees, while the distribution fee was changed to ₦42.45.

The second statement also had an additional Midstream and Gas Infrastructure Fund fee of ₦4.495.

The group of oil marketers accused by the Vice President of Dangote Industries Limited, Devakumar Edwin, to have reported the Dangote Refinery to President Bola Tinubu for its low-priced product is the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketer’s Association of Nigeria, The PUNCH reports.

The association’s secretary, however, denied reporting the refinery to Tinubu in the manner Edwin described.

Last week, the Dangote official during a space session organised by Nairametrics on X claimed that the oil marketers reported the refinery to the President that the plant’s low-priced diesel was counter-productive to oil marketers’ businesses.

He also revealed that oil marketers had continued to boycott Dangote diesel and aviation fuel after the refinery crashed the price of diesel.

According to him, over 95 per cent of petroleum product importers in Nigeria are not buying products from the Dangote refinery.

He said the refinery struggles to sell about 29 tankers of diesel per day due to low patronage from local petroleum product importers.

As a result of poor local patronage, the refinery, he said, exports most of its diesel and aviation fuel.

Petroleum product marketers in Nigeria have written to President Bola Tinubu, complaining that the refinery’s local diesel prices, which have dropped from N1,200 to N1,000 and now to N900 per litre, are negatively impacting their businesses,” Edwin stated.

Although, several petroleum marketers’ associations have issued statements debunking this claim, a copy of the letter obtained by one of our correspondents on Sunday revealed the identity of the group that was accused by the Dangote official as the DAPPMAN.

In the letter addressed to the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, on July 4, 2024, the association stated that the correspondence was to highlight issues in the Downstream Petroleum Industry which require urgent intervention to engender the sustenance of deregulation and free market policies as intended by the PIA 2021.

The letter signed by its Executive Secretary, Olufemi Adewole, was titled, “An Urgent Call For The Sustenance Of Deregulation And Free Market In The Downstream Petroleum Industry In Strict Compliance With The Petroleum Industry Act 2021”.

We write to bring to the attention of the President of The Senate, some highlights of issues in the Downstream Petroleum Industry which require urgent intervention to engender the sustenance of deregulation and free market policies as intended by the PIA 2021.

“We recognise the need for the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority to remain committed to the legislation establishing it with consistent policies. Deregulation and a free market are critical for the survival of this Industry and stipulations must remain fair with consistent policies which are required to achieve the real intendment of deregulation and liberalisation of the petroleum downstream sector.

We also recognise and note the recent and boisterous support for Dangote refinery by the leadership of the National Assembly during your recent visit to the refinery and we hereby state emphatically that the success of the refinery would indeed be a thing of pride and joy to all of us as Nigerians,” the letter read in part.

It stated that before the establishment of the Dangote refinery, Nigerian business entrepreneurs had invested over N3tn in the nation’s downstream petroleum sector and the tilt towards the creation of a monopoly for the supply of Automotive Gas Oil to Nigeria’s downstream operators solely by the Dangote Refinery is detrimental not only to the downstream operators but the nation at large.

The association explained that the created monopoly deprives Nigerians of cheaper options, as the Dangote Refinery will always have the final say and dictate prices without any competing alternatives, just like it currently operates in the cement, sugar industry, the salt production sector and noodles sector.

It also alleged that the company’s diesel product far exceeds the average of 50/ppm sulphur required for AGO imports by marketers, “yet the regulator has restricted all other downstream operators to sourcing this product exclusively from the Dangote Refinery.”

The letter continued, “We are all aware of the antecedents of the Dangote Industries in the cement industry, the sugar industry, the salt production sector and the attempts made in the noodles sector all of which either left competing brands comatose or seriously bruised.

With hindsight of the foregoing, however, we note with dismay, the apparent tilt towards the creation of a monopoly for the supply of Automotive Gas Oil to Nigeria’s downstream operators solely by the Dangote Refinery.

“It is on credible record that marketers’ AGO imports have complied with the Afri 5’ Gasoil and Gasoline specification of sulphur content not exceeding 50/parts per million (ppm) from 1st January 2024 despite the inability of local refining capacity, (including the Dangote Refinery), to meet this specification to date.

“Dangote refinery’s AGO presently has sulphur content exceeding 700/ppm, in accordance with waiver granted by the NMDPRA. This far exceeds the average of 50/ppm sulphur required for AGO imports by marketers.

This is a clear adoption of Dangote Oil Refinery as the SOLE supplier of AGO to the nation. This situation is detrimental not only to the downstream operators but the nation at large. It deprives Nigerians of cheaper options, as the Dangote Refinery will always have the final say and dictate prices without any competing alternatives.

“In the spirit of deregulation, it is important that market forces are allowed free reign in the sector within the appropriate rule of Law. Dangote Refinery’s initial step was to crash the price of AGO from a ‘high’ of N1,700/litre to N1,200/litre and later to N1000/litre and later N900/litre despite the large inventory of the imported AGO with marketers which thus could not be sold as it was imported with very high forex rate.”

They stated that marketers with this huge volume of AGO saw the opportunity to reduce their losses when forex rates crashed and the naira appreciated against the US dollar as they sought to import cheaper AGO stock to ‘blend’ their retail pump price, reduce their losses and sell off their AGO stock.

Unfortunately, the regulator came up with the restrictive policy which foreclosed

importation of AGO thereby limiting the product source to only Dangote refinery,” DAPPMAN said in its letter.

The letter also alleged that the refinery consistently sells refined petroleum products to foreign traders at $50 per metric ton less than the price charged to local companies and charges in dollars without an option to pay in naira for local marketers.

We emphasize that all the scenarios listed above are neither in tandem with the spirit of PIA 2021 nor with the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act, 2018, which collectively restrict monopoly of any sort and indeed, run contrary to President Bola Tinubu administration’s admirable policies to foster ease-of-doing-business in Nigeria,” it said.

Making its recommendations, DAPPMAN asked the government to urgently intervene in the above situation by eliminating restrictions or forced limitations on marketers to source products from Dangote Refinery until the Port Harcourt and Warri Refineries are fully rehabilitated.

“There should be no restriction or forced limitation of any marketer to be sourcing his product from Dangote Refinery until the Port Harcourt and Warri Refineries are fully rehabilitated and re-streamed to increase local refining capacity and provide product options for the nation.

There should be no monopoly of sourcing and all marketers should be allowed to import fuels into the country in line with internationally recognised healthy specifications,” The letter concluded.

Commenting, the DAPPMAN Executive Secretary, Olufemi Adewole, in a chat with one of our correspondents, said the comments by the Dangote official didn’t paint the accurate picture.

“Please compare this actual paragraph of the letter which I signed to what Edwin quoted and twisted and you’ll see the difference,” He noted.

When asked if the marketers would still patronise the company, the secretary replied, “Like yesterday, yes!!!”

“NNPCL as sold buyer is Indirectly saying they are maintaining subsidy as it means marketers will take from the NNPC stock lifted off Dangote Refinery. “

Source: Punch Newspaper