Dangote Refinery’s Case Against FG Over Import Licences Stalled As Judge Is Absent

The case filed by Dangote Petroleum Refinery against the Federal Government over the alleged issuance of fuel import licences to some petroleum marketers was on Monday stalled due to the absence of the presiding judge, Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke of the Federal High Court, Lagos.

Justice Aneke was said to be unavailable, and the court adjourned the matter for hearing till October 7.

The suit, FHC/L/CS/857/2026, also named the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) and a number of petroleum marketing companies including NIPCO, AA Rano, Matrix, Shafa, Pinnacle and Bono, which the refinery claims benefited from the disputed import licences.
The Dangote Petroleum Refinery has filed a suit seeking to nullify the fuel import licences allegedly issued or renewed in favour of the marketers and the NNPC Ltd, arguing that the approvals were in breach of an earlier court order.

The application, which was brought pursuant to Sections 6, 36(1) and 287 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), Order 26 Rules 1 and 2 of the Federal High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules 2019 and the inherent jurisdiction of the court, is for an order of setting aside all import licences issued or renewed on or about the 6th day of May, 2026.

The refinery said the licenses were issued even after the court ordered on April 29, 2026 that all parties should maintain the status quo that existed on April 2, 2026.

However, NNPC, in its defence, asked the court to strike out the suit, contending that the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) and the Backward Integration Policy of the Federal Government empowered the appropriate regulatory authorities to issue fuel import licence as needed to ensure national supply.

There was no blanket ban on fuel imports by the national oil company, especially where imports were needed to secure product availability and market stability, it said.

NNPC further accused Dangote Refinery of trying to monopolize the Nigeria’s downstream petroleum market with the litigation.

The company said the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) was within its statutory powers when it issued the licences that are now the subject of the dispute, pointing out that the law provides for such approvals for companies with local refining capacity or a proven track record in petroleum trading.

It also argued that the Petroleum Industry Act does not impose a blanket ban on the importation of fuel except in the case of a verified domestic surplus, maintaining that importation is still a legitimate instrument for stabilising supply and prices of fuel.
Dangote Refinery, on its part, argued that the continued granting and renewal of import licences undermine local refining and contravene the provisions of Section 317(9) of the Petroleum Industry Act, which it says limits imports to instances of proven shortfall of domestic supply.

The refinery said Nigeria has enough domestic refining capacity to satisfy local demand with its installed capacity of roughly 650,000 barrels per day. It was based on regulatory data it said showed that daily petrol and diesel production now exceeds national consumption.

The refinery was set up “to meet Nigeria’s refined petroleum needs as well as create export surpluses”, it added. The project is a strategic national investment that will create a multi-billion-dollar market for Nigerian crude oil, it said.

But NNPC denied the claims, saying Dangote had not provided credible and verifiable evidence of its ability to independently guarantee Nigeria’s fuel supply.

Since then, the legal tussle has widened with an application by the NMDPRA to join the matter, and has become a broader challenge over Nigeria’s fuel import policy and regulation of the downstream petroleum sector.

Dangote also accused the NMDPRA, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) and the NNPC of fostering a hostile operating environment by continuing to issue import licences in the face of what it termed the absence of any domestic fuel supply shortfall.

The refinery also accused NNPC of not supplying it with enough crude oil, stating it receives approximately five crude cargoes a month instead of the 13 cargoes required to run at full capacity, forcing it to buy crude from the international market at higher prices.

The NNPC denied the allegation, saying that crude oil allocation was based on operational, commercial, security and logistical considerations, and not an attempt to frustrate the operations of the Dangote Refinery.

The company warned that capping fuel import licences could put Nigeria at risk of supply disruptions, price volatility and threats to national energy security.

But Dangote said continued importation of fuel would damage local refining, discourage investment and frustrate Nigeria’s long-term goal of energy self-sufficiency.

The refinery, in its reliefs, is seeking an interim injunction restraining the Attorney-General of the Federation and the relevant regulatory agencies from issuing or renewing import licences for Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) and Jet A1 pending the determination of the suit, arguing that it would suffer irreparable financial and operational losses if the licences continue to be issued.