The Lagos State Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has attributed the limited crude oil supply to Dangote Refinery and other local refineries to issues like oil theft and pipeline vandalism.

Dr. Chinyere Almona, Director General of LCCI, mentioned these problems in a statement addressing the crude oil supply challenges faced by local refineries in Nigeria.

In a recent interview with CNN, Aliko Dangote, Chairman of Dangote Refinery, highlighted that International Oil Companies (IOCs) are finding it difficult to supply crude oil to local refineries. He noted that these companies prefer exporting oil to earn foreign currency.

Almona responded by saying that oil theft, pipeline vandalism, and policy issues are major obstacles to the supply of crude oil to local refineries.

She added that the ongoing discussions involve clarifying public information and preliminary talks with various parties. Despite public claims from Dangote Group that some IOCs are supplying crude to the refinery, these challenges persist.

Almona acknowledged the government’s efforts to ensure crude supply to refineries like Dangote’s but called on the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) to do more, particularly in easing pricing and supply contract issues.

Despite Nigeria producing over 1.28 million barrels of crude oil daily, Dangote Refinery has had to look to the US for supply due to local shortages.

Experts have pointed to insufficient crude supply as a reason for the slow start of fuel production at the Dangote refinery, which began producing diesel and aviation fuel in January 2024, months after its official opening in May the previous year.