Abuja, Nigeria – Paperwork obtained by SaharaReporters have revealed that Sayyu Dantata, half-brother of billionaire Aliko Dangote and CEO of MRS Holdings Ltd., is among the key figures importing gas into Nigeria from Malta. This disclosure follows comparable revelations regarding different main gamers within the Nigerian petroleum business, equivalent to Matrix Vitality Group.
The paperwork present that MRS Oil & Gasoline Co. Restricted, owned by Dantata, has been importing premium motor spirit (PMS), generally often called gas, from Malta. This comes after current reviews that Matrix Vitality Group was additionally importing gas from the identical European nation.
In July, Aliko Dangote, Chairman of Dangote Petroleum Refinery, alleged that sure officers inside the Nigerian Nationwide Petroleum Firm Restricted (NNPCL) have been concerned in importing substandard petrol merchandise into Nigeria from Malta. He accused these people of working a refinery in Malta, which was producing inferior gas destined for the Nigerian market.
Dangote remarked, “Even at 650,000 bpm and 700,000 bpm that we’re producing was a greater high quality than what was imported. And I’m certain most of you’ll have issues together with your automobile due to the unhealthy gas that was imported into the nation. I nonetheless stand by what I mentioned.”
He additional claimed, “Some NNPC individuals, some merchants have opened a mixing plant someplace in Malta. Everyone knows these areas, we all know what they’re doing.”
In 2023, Nigeria’s petroleum imports from Malta surged to $2.8 billion, a big leap from earlier years the place imports have been negligible or non-existent. Nevertheless, NNPCL Group CEO, Mele Kyari, swiftly denied Dangote’s allegations, stating that the corporate had no involvement with any refinery in Malta.
Regardless of the denials, additional investigations by SaharaReporters and BusinessDay have uncovered a posh scheme involving the importation of substandard Russian petroleum merchandise to Malta, the place they’re blended with higher-quality gas earlier than being shipped to Nigeria. This follow has raised considerations concerning the high quality of gas being distributed within the Nigerian market.
One of many paperwork obtained by SaharaReporters, dated March 4, 2024, is a letter from Moyosola Kuku, Normal Supervisor of Threat Administration at MRS Oil & Gasoline Co. Restricted, addressed to the Managing Director of NNPCL. The letter, titled ‘Submission of Transport/Cargo Paperwork for Petroleum Product Supply MT AETHER/SUB with Laycan Seventeenth-Nineteenth February 2024,’ offers detailed proof of gas importation by MRS from Malta.
The letter referenced hooked up paperwork associated to MT AETHER, together with marine insurance coverage, invoice of lading, certificates of high quality, and vessel survey reviews, amongst others. These paperwork affirm that MRS Oil & Gasoline Co. Ltd bought 91,219.232 metric tons of unleaded gasoline from PETROCAM DMCC, loaded on the port of OPL Malta, and subsequently bought the total cargo to NNPC for supply offshore Lagos.
This revelation underscores the numerous function that Dantata and different main gamers in Nigeria’s petroleum business have in importing refined gas from Malta, elevating additional questions concerning the high quality and origin of gas within the Nigerian market.
