Dangote Refinery Discontinues N100bn Import Licenses Suit Against NNPCL, Others

The notice of discontinuance dated July 28, 2025, was filed by the Refinery’s lawyer, George Ibrahim SAN.

“TAKE NOTICE that the Plaintiff (Dangote Refinery) herein discontinues this Suit against the Defendants forthwith,” the notice reads.

Dangote Refinery, had in the last proceedings, faulted the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission’s (FCCPC) second attempt to join and challenge its N100 billion import license lawsuit.

The refinery’s lawyer, Ibrahim, SAN, explained to the Federal High Court in Abuja why the Commission was “no longer necessary” as a party in the case.

Justice Inyang Ekwo dismissed the FCCPC’s joinder request while ruling on the Commission’s application to join and prove Dangote’s alleged planned monopoly in the oil and gas sector.

The pending suit by Dangote Refinery, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1324/2024, sought to void import licenses issued to several Nigerian oil companies by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).

These companies include, Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Matrix Petroleum Services Limited, A.A. Rano Limited and four others.

In its motion and accompanying documents, the FCCPC legal team led by Barrister Olarenwaju Osinaike had stated that the FCCPC is seeking to be joined as a necessary party to the proceedings because its interests would allegedly be affected by the outcome of the suit.

The Commission argued that the case involves whether preventing the oil companies in dispute from operating the said licenses would lead to anti-competition or a monopoly in favor of Dangote Refinery.

In response to the FCCPC’s request to join the suit, Dangote Refinery stated: “It is not true that the plaintiff’s suit is monopolistic but solely aimed at revamping local refining of petroleum products in Nigeria.”

Ibrahim submitted that his client was granted a license by the NMDPRA under the Petroleum Industry Act to import, produce, and refine petroleum products.

“Dangote Refinery is able to meet the daily consumption demand of the country,” he stated, adding that the NMDPRA allegedly granted licenses to the defendants to import petroleum products contrary to Section 317(8) and (9) of the Petroleum Industry Act.

He further argued: “The Petroleum Industry Act does not give the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) authority to issue licenses or impose levies on the plaintiff,” describing the FCCPC as a “meddlesome interloper” that should not be allowed to join the suit.

Ruling on the FCCPC’s joinder application at the time, Justice Ekwo stated that while the law allows a necessary party to join a case, that party must prove its relevance to the matter.

Ekwo held that, having reviewed the submissions of both the FCCPC and Dangote Refinery, he could not find how the Commission was relevant to the case involving the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).

The judge subsequently ordered the dismissal of the FCCPC’s joinder application.

Justice Mohammed Umar (a new judge in Abuja Division) had subsequently fixed September 29 for hearing on Dangote Refinery’s case and ordered that hearing notices be issued to all parties.

The development implies that the Refinery has informed the court that it will no longer pursue the import licence suit.

At the next adjourned date, the Refinery’s Legal team will be expected to make an oral application for discontinuance, in line with Rules of Court.

It will then be left to the presiding judge to make pronouncement on the application.

The trial court had also dismissed a preliminary objection by the NNPCL against Dangote Refinery, stating that the application was incompetent.

Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, announced his willingness to sell his multibillion-dollar refinery to NNPCL amid escalating disputes with regulators and equity partners last year.

Dangote had, during the time of ex-NNPCL GMD, Mele Kyari, previously accused other importers of bringing substandard petroleum products into Nigeria.

The federal government later allowed marketers to purchase petroleum products directly from Dangote Refinery, following NNPCL’s decision to withdraw as an intermediary between the refinery and marketers.

Recently, Dangote, has asked President Bola Tinubu to include refined petroleum products in the list of items banned under the ‘Nigeria First’ policy of the Federal Government.