The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, NMDPRA said the Nigerian government was yet to license the Dangote refinery to begin operations in the country.
The chief executive officer of NMDPRA, Farouk Ahmed, disclosed this while speaking with Journalists at the state House on Thursday.
According to Ahmed, the claims of ongoing efforts to scuttle the operations of Dangote refinery due to lack of supply of crude oil by International Oil Companies were not true, adding that the refinery was still at the pre-commissioning stage and has not been licensed yet.
Ahmed maintained that the request would promote monopoly in the market and was not good for the nation in terms of energy security.
Devakumar Edwin, who is the vice-president at Dangote Industries Limited had recently stated that International Oil Companies were making it difficult to access local crude, often forcing them to use expensive middlemen and pay inflated prices.
