Refiners seek fuel import ban as court clears path

Nigeria's refinery owners have called for a progressive ban on petroleum product imports and full implementation of the Naira-for-Crude policy to strengthen local refining. This comes as the Federal High Court in Abuja ordered the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority to continue granting import licences to eligible oil marketers. The contrasting developments have renewed debate over how Nigeria can balance domestic refining with competition and fuel supply security. Speaking at the 3rd Nigeria Oil Refining Summit in Lagos on Monday, President of the Crude Oil Refinery Owners Association of Nigeria, Momoh Oyarekhua, said Nigeria must increasingly use its crude oil to feed domestic refineries rather than export crude and import refined products, and called for a progressive restriction of petroleum product imports as local refining capacity expands.

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