Dangote Petroleum Refinery has officially withdrawn its ₦100 billion lawsuit challenging the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) over the issuance of petroleum import licences.
The refinery had filed the case on September 6, 2024, alleging that the NMDPRA breached sections 317(8) and 317(9) of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) by granting import permits despite the country’s existing domestic refining capacity. Dangote argued that import licences should only be issued when a verified shortfall in local supply exists.
In the suit, the NMDPRA was named as the first defendant, alongside the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, AYM Shafa Limited, A.A. Rano Limited, T. Time Petroleum Limited, 2015 Petroleum Limited, and Matrix Petroleum Services Limited.
During Wednesday’s proceedings, Dangote’s counsel, C.O. Adegbe, informed the court that the refinery had filed a notice of discontinuance on July 28, following an agreement by all parties to have the matter struck out.
Presiding Judge Mohammed Umar subsequently dismissed the case after hearing submissions from both the claimant’s and defendants’ counsel.
