The National Publicity Secretary of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Chinedu Ukadike, has berated the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) over its attempt to increase its stake in the Dangote Petroleum Refinery.

The President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, disclosed that the group rejected requests by the NNPCL to increase its 7.25 per cent stake in the Dangote Petroleum Refinery.

Dangote had disclosed this during an interview with the Chief Executive Officer of the Norwegian Sovereign Wealth Fund, Nicolai Tangen, monitored by our correspondents on Wednesday.

Reacting to the development, Ukadike questioned the NNPCL move despite the poor state of government-owned refineries.

He lamented that the Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna refineries under the NNPC control remained largely inactive despite billions of dollars spent on rehabilitation.

“Why is NNPC trying to invest money in the Dangote refinery when it has three refineries that are not working? Why is NNPC not investing that money in those ones?” Ukadike asked.

He added, “The NNPC did not revive our refineries, but they want to look for where the refinery is already working to put money into it. Does that make sense?”

The IPMAN spokesman said Dangote had the right to reject the offer from the NNPC if he considered it unsuitable for his business interests.

“If Dangote refused to sell more stakes to NNPC, he must have his reasons. Dangote is a businessman. He doesn’t want issues, unnecessary crises, and nepotism. He knows what he wants, and I also think he has enough cash to fund his business,” he stated.

Ukadike further urged the national oil company to focus on reviving critical oil infrastructure across the country instead of pursuing additional ownership of the refinery.

“The NNPC should repair the pipelines and revive the refineries instead of eyeing the Dangote refinery,” he said.