Dangote-NNPC rift: Petrol imports from Malta hit $2bn

By Abass Ganiyu

 By Joy Adekayero

The value of Nigeria’s petroleum imports from Malta jumped 43 times in 10 years, reaching $2.08 billion in 2023 from $47.5 million in 2013.

These import figures gathered by BusinessDay enrich the ongoing discourse in the oil sector, particularly with respect to the rift between Dangote Group and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC).

The data sourced from Trade Map, a global database on international trade statistics, showed that Nigeria imported petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals worth $ 2.08 billion in 2023, a 342 percent increase from $47.5 million as of 2013.


Read also: Shareholders condemn ‘unwarranted efforts’ to demarket Dangote Refinery

Between 2013 and 2016, import values fluctuated. There was a peak in 2015 at $117.01 million, followed by a significant drop in 2016 to $13.32 million. For six consecutive years, from 2017 to 2022, petroleum imports from Malta recorded zero value.

In 2023, there was a substantial jump in petroleum imports, reaching $2.08 billion. This represents a massive increase compared to previous years and the years with no imports.

The sudden surge in imports from Malta, a relatively minor player in global oil markets, has raised eyebrows and fueled speculation following allegations from Aliko Dangote, chairman of Dangote Industries Limited, that some personnel of Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, oil traders and terminals have opened blending plants in Malta.

“Some of the terminals, some of the NNPC people and some traders have opened blending plants somewhere off Malta,” Dangote spoke at the House of Representatives on Monday, noting that the areas of the blending plants are well-known by all the stakeholders.


An oil blending plant has no refining capability but can be used to blend re-refined oil (a used motor oil that has been treated to remove dirt, fuel, and water) with additives to create finished lubricant products.

“Someone who doesn’t know how SPVs work with shares warehoused in trusts that have unknown permanent beneficiaries will think Alhaji doesn’t know what he’s saying,” Kelvin Emmanuel, co-founder and CEO of Dairy Hills and energy expert said on X

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