The Federal Government has approved Dangote Refinery as the exclusive supplier of jet fuel for Nigeria’s airline operators.
This was disclosed by the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, during an interview with Channels TV on Tuesday.
Keyamo revealed that with his approval and backing, the airline operators agreed to designate the 650,000 barrels per day refinery as the sole provider of jet fuel for the aviation sector.
He noted that the move comes at an opportune time, following the Federal Government’s recent implementation of a naira-for-crude agreement with Dangote.
The minister emphasised that this arrangement would help alleviate the pressure on Nigeria’s foreign exchange.
“The airline operators just met recently. With my blessing, it’s a decision from the airline operators in Nigeria that they should only buy from Dangote refinery Jet A1.
“You can see that yesterday we started a naira-for-crude purchase with Dangote. It’s all naira, no dollar component,” Keyamo said.
Keyamo added that sourcing petrol from Dangote would shield airline operators from the impact of crude oil price fluctuations, ultimately reducing their operational costs.
“The price will no longer be subjected to the varying factors of the international market, nor the headwinds of oil price in the international market.
“It will be in local currency so we can be clear as to the cost of it. We will buy in naira. I’m sure we are going to have access to cheaper Jet A1 fuel,” Keyamo said.
In April, the Dangote refinery commenced operations, starting with the production of jet fuel and diesel, with the diesel reaching the local market by the following month.
After supplying some of its aviation fuel domestically, the refinery also began exporting, with its first shipment departing for Europe.
On May 27, the vessel, Doric Breeze, left the Lekki Free Zone in Lagos carrying 45,000 metric tons of jet fuel bound for Rotterdam, Netherlands, according to S&P Global Commodities at Sea data.
This shipment was part of a 120,000 metric ton tender, with BP securing the initial allocation. Spanish refiner Cepsa also won a portion of the tender and is expected to deliver jet fuel to Europe soon.
So far, Dangote has exported six cargoes of jet fuel and kerosene, all of which were delivered to Senegal, Togo, or Ghana.