The Nigerian President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu has met the committee overseeing the implementation of crude oil and refined products sales in local currency.
The committee was led by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, to the State House, Abuja for the meeting.
In attendance at the meeting were the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mr Mele Kyari; the Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Dr Zacch Adedeji; and the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Yemi Cardoso.
Others are the Authority’s Chief Executive (ACE) of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Mallam Farouk Ahmed; the Commission Chief Executive (CCE) of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Mr Gbenga Komolafe; as well as the President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote.
President Tinubu had directed the NNPCL to commence sales of crude oil to Dangote Refinery and other local refiners on July 29 this year.
Details of briefings by the committee to the President are yet to be made known but it is believed President Tinubu aims to keep abreast with developments in the industry.
Announcing the introduction of the initiative at the end of a Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, Adedeji, who is also Special Adviser to the President on Revenue, said the basic reason was to reduce foreign exchange pressure on the economy.
He said; “At the Federal Executive Council, there was a memo by Mr President, which is to promote the sale of crude oil within local refineries and Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), to deal in our local currency.
“The attitude of Mr. President is thinking outside the box to solve Nigeria’s problem and actually to localised the solutions to Nigeria’s problem.
“He has approved through the Council that effective immediately, that NNPC get engaged with local refineries and we are starting that with Dangote Refinery. That the sales of crude oil to Dangote Refinery be denominated in Naira and also the sales of by-products from Dangote Refinery to distributors also be conducted in naira.
“What does it mean to our economy? One, the pressure on foreign exchange will be reduced.”
Mercy Chukwudiebere
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