According to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), the Dangote Refinery was able to come online thanks to a $1 billion loan guaranteed by crude oil.
According to a Punch report, Olufemi Soneye, the chief corporate communications officer for the NNPCL, made this statement on Monday, December 16, at the Energy Relations Stakeholders Engagement in Abuja.
The establishment of Nigeria’s first private refinery was made possible by a calculated choice to get a $1 billion loan guaranteed by NNPC’s crude, which helped the Dangote Refinery through periods of financial difficulties.
“NNPC’s commitment to cultivating public-private partnerships that propel national development is demonstrated by this initiative,” he was cited as saying.
However, Soneye omitted information on the terms of the deal and the payment procedures, as well as the $1 billion that the NNPCL had obtained on behalf of Dangote Refinery.
He also made a suggestion that the state-owned oil business had helped stabilize the federation’s foreign exchange issue by facilitating a $3.3 billion loan from Gazelle.
As you may remember, the NNPCL announced in January of this year that it had a syndicated $3.3 billion crude oil prepayment facility in collaboration with the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank).
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There were still unresolved issues about the $3.3 billion crude-for-cash loan from Afreximbank to NNPCL, according to this organization.
Although analysts were concerned about some potential hazards, the NNPCL had attempted to stabilize the Nigerian currency with the facility.
Notwithstanding the crude-for-cash agreement, the value of the naira declined further in relation to the dollar, from roughly N960 in January to N1,500 in December.
The transaction was one of the biggest syndicated debts created in Africa, according to the bank, and the biggest crude-backed facility in Nigeria.
Financial Derivatives Company Limited’s CEO at the time, Bismarck Rewane, voiced concern about the NNPCL’s arrangements, stating that the naira had been under pressure in spite of them.