Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals has renewed its appeal for a consistent supply of crude priced within prevailing market benchmarks, after data from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) showed the refinery rejected 15.5 million barrels of crude offered by local producers in the second quarter of 2026.
The refinery says it remains fully committed to sourcing Nigerian crude and supporting the Domestic Crude Supply Obligation (DCSO) framework, but insists supply must be adequate and commercially competitive to keep domestic refining sustainable. Group Vice President for Oil & Gas and Fertiliser, Devakumar Edwin, said the real issue is not the volume nominally offered under DCSO but how much is genuinely available on workable commercial terms, adding that the company simply needs crude “available in sufficient volumes and at competitive market prices.”
Edwin said the refinery has struggled to secure crude directly from domestic producers since the DCSO framework began, forcing it to source a large share of its allocation through international oil companies and third parties instead — a route that often adds premiums pushing prices above benchmarks such as Platts and Argus. He also flagged provisions in the Petroleum Industry Act that let counterparties walk away from negotiations without a structured review process, which he said creates uncertainty that undermines the domestic supply system.
Dangote says that, aside from cargoes supplied under NNPC term contracts, it has concluded only a limited number of DCSO deals since the arrangement began, with some cargoes already committed to other buyers before talks with the refinery even started. The company is calling for greater transparency and more commercially sustainable supply arrangements, arguing reliable crude access is critical to maximising local refining, strengthening energy security and cutting Nigeria’s reliance on imported fuel.
Source: orientalnewsng.com
