Top officials barred from travel amid Nigeria's $2.9 billion oil refinery fraud

In a recent development, the Nigerian Immigration Service confiscated the passports of multiple officials accused of mismanaging funds set aside for the reconstruction of the Port Harcourt Refining Company, Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company, and Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Companies.

“We received 16 names some days ago with instructions to flag them. This means they should not be allowed to travel out of the country,” an anonymous source within the Nigerian Immigration Service revealed.

The repair of these facilities drew widespread attention last year after news surfaced that the government had made significant progress in restoring facilities that had been inoperable for decades.

However, the Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) recently made arrests in connection with the mismanagement of $2,956,872,622.36, which was intended to be used to restore the refineries to full operation.

As per a report by the Punch, the EFCC was looking into the distribution of $656,963,938 to the Warri refinery, $740,669,600 to the Kaduna refinery, and $1,559,239,084.36 to the Port Harcourt refinery.

“Some have been arrested already, and we are still on the lookout for others. Nigerians are interested in seeing our refineries work. We are asking: where is the money, and what has happened to the refineries?” an anonymous EFCC official stated.


Rehabilitation plans for Nigeria’s oil refineries in recent years

In August 2023, the Nigerian government disclosed that it planned to have all four of its oil refineries operational after being out of order for decades.

Many assessed that the move was in response to the Dangote refinery, which at the time threatened to control a monopoly of all locally refined fuel.

Prior to the inauguration of the Dangote Refinery, Nigeria, Africa's largest oil producer, imported almost all of its refined petroleum needs, owing to limited capacity and poor maintenance of its refineries.

The 110,000-barrel Kaduna plant in the north, as well as three facilities in the oil-rich Niger delta, including the 125,000-barrel Warri refinery, are among four dilapidated state-owned refineries that used to produce 4450,000 barrels per day in total.

The Port Harcourt refinery in 2023 was said to be undergoing a $1.5 billion makeover after Italy's Tecnimont was awarded the contract for the work.

The oil ministry estimated that the renovation would take 44 months to complete.

Fast forward to a year later, and the conversations had pivoted from rehabilitation to operational.

Several headlines, late last year, showed that the Warri and Port Harcourt refineries were fully operational and producing gasoline.

However, the operation of these refineries has been marred by poor output, constant shutdown for repairs, and dissatisfaction among workers.

Additionally, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited revealed that N80bn was found in the account of one of the sacked MDs.

By Chinedu Okafor, Business Insider Africa

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Threat to exit Nigeria does not absolve you of liabilities, FG tells Facebook, Instagram

THE Federal Government, through the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), on Saturday told Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, that threatening to leave Nigeria does not absolve it of liabilities for the outcome of a judicial process.

The FCCPC disclosed this in a statement on Saturday evening following reports that Meta may be forced to shut down its services in Nigeria over escalating tension with government regulators.

The company is currently facing fines totalling approximately $290 million (N223 billion) imposed by three Nigerian regulatory bodies for alleged violations of competition, advertising and data privacy laws.

Meta unsuccessfully challenged the penalties at the Federal High Court, Abuja, which ordered it to pay the fines before the end of June 2025.

However, while reacting to the threat of leaving Nigeria, FCCPC on Saturday said the threat by Meta to leave Nigeria does not absolve it of liabilities regarding the judicial process.

The FCCPC in a statement by its Director, Corporate Affairs, Ondaje Ijagwu, said the claim appears to be a calculated move aimed at inducing negative public reaction and potentially pressuring the FCCPC to reconsider its decision.

It wrote: “The FCCPC investigated Meta Platforms and WhatsApp (jointly referred to as “Meta Parties”) for allegedly violating the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA) and the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR).

“The commission found that Meta Parties engaged in multiple and repeated infringements of the FCCPA (2018) and the NDPR.

“These infringements included denying Nigerians the right to control their personal data, transferring and sharing Nigerian user data without authorisation, discriminating against Nigerian users compared to users in other jurisdictions and abusing their dominant market position by forcing unfair privacy policies.

“Interestingly, Meta had been fined for similar breaches in Texas ($1.5 billion) and only recently was asked to pay $1.3 billion for violating EU Data Privacy Rules. Elsewhere in India, South Korea, France and Australia, Meta had faced varying penalties for similar breaches. But Meta never resorted to the blackmail of threatening to exit those countries. They obeyed.

“The recent affirmation of FCCPC’s final order by the Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal requires Meta Parties to take steps to comply with Nigerian law, stop exploiting Nigerian consumers, change their practices to meet Nigerian standards and respect consumer rights, consistent with international best practices.”

Nigerian Tribune

Related story: Nigerian court upholds $220M penalty on Meta for privacy breach

Dangote’s fight for Nigeria’s oil future continues as he vows to defeat the cabal

The Nigerian billionaire, alluded to again, his a fight against some individuals in Nigeria's long-standing oil importation system, who have reaped enormous benefits from government subsidies on imported petroleum.

He noted that they are still deliberately attempting to destroy his oil refinery, as he stated, “those groups have funded resistance to the Bola Tinubu government’s removal of petrol subsidies and are opposed to the refinery operating easily in the country.”

He, nonetheless, like he did a few months back, noted that he would eventually win.

“We’re fighting, and the fight is not yet finished. But I have been fighting all my life, and I am ready and 100 per cent sure I will win at the end of the day,” Dangote added.

Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Africa's richest individual, has a history of taking large-scale risks, but even he admits that his $23 billion oil refinery project is the most daring and difficult enterprise of his life.

While the Dangote Refinery has been hailed as a game-changing project for Nigeria's energy sector, its journey from concept to reality has shown the country's oil industry's profound intricacies and vested interests, notably in refining.

The Dangote Refinery, located on a 6,200-acre site in the Lekki Free Zone, is the world’s largest single-train refinery.

The plant officially began operations in 2023, after more than a decade of construction and investment. However, the refinery's real challenge began after its launch.

Dangote's current remarks coincided with Nigeria's efforts to expand its capacity to store petroleum products in anticipation of shocks to the world oil market after US President Donald Trump disrupted international commerce by threatening to impose tariffs, as reported by the Punch newspaper.

Dangote refinery vs players in the oil market

One of Dangote's most notable conflicts has been with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). The NNPC initially offered to invest $1 billion for a 20% ownership interest in the refinery.

That offer was eventually reduced to 7%, with requests to reclaim a portion of the funds previously deposited.

Outside of this, the group had also complicated the process of the refinery sourcing crude as it initially mandated that the refinery purchase crude oil in dollars.

This was later mitigated by the Naira-for-Crude initiative, which allowed the refinery to purchase crude in the country’s local currency for six months, thereby reducing the cost of operation.

After six months, the initiative was halted again before being reintroduced, highlighting the complex market structure of the Nigerian oil sector.

Dangote is unreserved in his condemnation of the group, as he, in February, in an interview with Forbes, accused the group of being a part of the country's "oil mafia."

“The oil mafia is more deadly than the one in drugs because, with the oil mafia, there are so many people that are involved,” Dangote had said at the time.

“I’ve been fighting battles all my life, and I have not lost one yet.

You might be wining and dining with them, but these are the guys that are the masters of moving things around.”


Support from IPMAN

As Dangote stays ongoing fighting the 'cabal', the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria declared their support for him.

“Well, this is business. Competition abounds. There is no businessman whom people will not fight if he is doing well, especially when it is only your goods that are being produced, and the others are not being patronised because of the price.

So, it is evident that every businessman wants to survive. It’s not an issue. What we can do is encourage him,” IPMAN Publicity Secretary, Chinedu Udadike, stated.

“We independent marketers are happy with him for his price slashes, although sometimes it’s against our own business strategy and projections. But that is part of the business, it is profit and loss.

So, if he’s talking about how people want to sabotage him, he has told us that he’s ready to fight the oil cabals, and he is in this business to ensure that Nigerians don’t suffer.

So, we encourage him not to lose hope, and we independent marketers support him in all ramifications,” Ukadike added.

By Chinedu Okafor, Business Insider Africa

Related story: Nigeria's richest man Aliko Dangote takes on the 'oil mafia'