Nigeria imported $2.08 billion fuel from Malta alone in 2023

Emerging details have revealed allegations of some Nigerians owning blending plants in Malta, coinciding with a surge in Nigeria’s fuel imports from the small European nation. According to World Bank data, Malta, with a population of 531,113 in 2022, became a significant fuel supplier to Nigeria last year, with imports totaling $2.08 billion.

This revelation follows claims by Alhaji Aliko Dangote, owner of the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical, suggesting that some Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCLtd) officials have blending plants in Malta. Trade Map data shows that Nigeria’s import of petroleum oils from bituminous minerals saw a dramatic rise from $47.5 million in 2013 to $2.08 billion in 2023—a 342 percent increase. Notably, there were no fuel imports from Malta between 2017 and 2022, but a sharp increase occurred in 2023.

Dangote has alleged that certain NNPC personnel are involved in these operations. “Some of the terminals, some of the NNPC people, and some traders have opened blending plants somewhere off Malta. We all know these areas. We know what they are doing,” he stated amid the challenges facing his $20 billion refinery.

Contradicting these claims, Mele Kyari, Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC, has denied any ownership of blending plants outside Nigeria. Kyari emphasized he has no business interests, direct or by proxy, outside Nigeria, apart from a local agricultural venture. He stated, “I am inundated by enquiries from family members, friends, and associates on the public declaration by the President of Dangote Group that some NNPC workers have established a blending plant in Malta. To clarify, I do not own or operate any business directly or by proxy anywhere in the world except for a local mini-agric venture, neither am I aware of any employee of the NNPC that owns or operates a blending plant in Malta or anywhere else in the world.”

This dispute comes amidst other controversies. Farouk Ahmed, Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), has alleged that diesel produced by Dangote’s refinery has higher sulphur content compared to imports, which Dangote dismisses as an attempt to undermine his refinery. Ahmed has also indicated Nigeria’s continued reliance on imported fuel to avoid Dangote’s monopoly, while the government of Gabon has shown interest in Dangote’s refinery services.

In response, Dangote has challenged the NMDPRA chief on the quality of products, urging the House of Representatives to set up an independent committee to verify fuel quality at filling stations and from his production line. He asserted, “I want you to set up a committee that will come with every representative headed by your chosen Honourable Members to come and lead in taking samples from filling stations because I must tell you today that all the test certificates that people are busy floating around, where are the labs? Even if they have the labs, I can tell you they are fake certificates. The real one that you now know that they are right is to take from the filling station and also come and take from our production line. Now, you will be able to tell Nigerians that this is it.”