Nigeria Court Orders Regulator to Keep Licensing Fuel Importers
A federal judge in Abuja ruled on Monday that Nigeria's fuel regulator must keep licensing three big importers, as Africa's largest refinery presses to end petrol imports. The post Nigeria Court Orders Regulator to Keep Licensing Fuel Importers appeared first on The Rio Times .
A Nigerian federal court has ruled that the fuel regulator must continue issuing and renewing import licences for three marketers, despite the regulator's previous stalling. This judgment keeps fuel imports alive as the country's largest refinery seeks to restrict imports. The marketers, AA Rano, Matrix Energy, and AYM Shafa, sued in June alleging the regulator's sporadic licensing issuance entrenched local refinery dominance.
The court found the regulator's actions violated the Petroleum Industry Act and Nigeria's competition law, which obliges it to promote competition. The three marketers have invested over US$20 billion in infrastructure and retail, arguing that a single-refinery monopoly would be detrimental. They now await approval of their licences, which could impact supply, prices, and corporate earnings, especially for foreign investors considering Nigeria's market.
Written by urgent.news from The Rio Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
