The Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA), the Federal Government’s One-Stop-Shop Committee on the Sale of Crude in Naira, and the Dangote Refinery have agreed to midwife the presidential directive on crashing domestic prices of petroleum products to enhance national energy security and promote economic growth.

The three entities agreed to synergise their commitments to achieve the directive when the members of the committee paid a courtesy visit on the NEPZA’s Managing Director, Olufemi Ogunyemi, on Tuesday in Abuja.

This was disclosed by the Head of Corporate Communications of NEPZA, Martins Odeh, in a statement on Wednesday.

The Federal Government established the committee to facilitate a one-stop-shop process aimed at streamlining the sale of crude oil to local refineries, particularly the Dangote Refinery, by coordinating services from various regulatory, security, and other relevant agencies for smooth implementation.

The statement said that Ogunyemi expressed confidence in the president’s vision and drive to achieve full domestic sufficiency in petroleum products, adding that NEPZA was prepared to cooperate and collaborate with the committee to achieve this mandate.

“Interestingly, the Authority supervised the construction of the highly celebrated world-class Dangote Refinery from the beginning to its inauguration, making it a success story for us.

“The mission for energy security is half achieved because the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE is a registered Free Zone and as such continues to benefit from the scheme’s incentives. Since the Federal Government has put a lot into ensuring the establishment of the refinery, I believe the time has come for the entity to lead our drive for energy security,” the managing director said.

The NEPZA boss further stated that the refinery, which had since commenced operation with the delivery of 480 vessels so far, was proudly linked to producing a wide range of crude types and gradually meeting the country’s domestic demand for petrol, diesel, kerosene, aviation jet fuel, and for export.

He, therefore, noted that the sale of crude in naira would obliterate the vulnerability of the local currency against the dollar in crude transactions within the country.

“Let me reiterate that the Free Trade Zone Scheme remains a key economic driver of our nation, and so, we are happy that the Dangote Refinery is one of our shining stars that shall be used to drive this policy,” Ogunyemi said.

He further said, “This visit cannot be more strategic as it brings together key interest groups, stakeholders, and relevant sister agencies that constituted this committee to deliver a workable template that can guide this well-thought-out naira-for-crude swap transaction for the benefit of our nation.”

The committee’s coordinator, Ms Maureen Ogbonna, described the committee’s task as one of the president’s key interventions to reposition the economy, stating that it was a matter of time before the country moved away from billing domestic crude sales in dollars.

According to her, the committee is already yielding the desired results following the display of political-will and the cooperation so far shown by stakeholders toward the policy.

“We are happy with this exceptional courtesy extended to us by Dr. Olufemi Ogunyemi, the MD/CEO of NEPZA and his readiness to freely allow us access to the Dangote Refinery, being the only serviceable refinery in the country now. This collaboration will surely enable the Dangote Refinery & Petrochemicals FZE to lead the way,” Ms Ogbonna said.

On his part, the representative of the Dangote Refinery & Petrochemicals, Akinsanya Mobolaji Mobolarin, explained that the Chairman/Founder of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, was always pleased to assist the country’s drive for development, industrialisation and economic growth.

Mobolarin, who is the General Manager of Engineering/Strategic Services of the refinery, acknowledged the impetus and the growth the policy would attract to the economy if implemented successfully, adding that the Dangote Refinery would be happy to help the country achieve energy security.