By Ibrahim Salaudeen, Lagos
Dangote Petroleum Refinery has accused the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) of attempting to cripple Nigeria’s energy supply chain and plunge her into an avoidable chaos and anarchy.
It alleged the union had given directive to its branches nationwide to cut off crude oil and gas supplies to its refinery, stressing that no law in Nigeria empowers the union to resort to self help in handing disagreement.
The Daily Crucible reports that as the face-off between Dangote Petroleum Refinery and the PENGASSAN worsened, the union directed its members to cut off gas and crude oil supplies to the refinery in protest over the alleged victimisation and disengagement of unionised workers at the refinery.
A directive from PENGASSAN National Secretariat to branch leaders, the General Secretary, Lumumba Okugbawa, accused the Dangote refinery’s management of victimizing workers who exercised their constitutional right to freedom of association.
“The management of Dangote Petroleum Refinery has disengaged our members in reaction to their decision to unionise. This illegitimacy cannot stand,” the union stated in its memo.
The union called on government and regulatory authorities to wade in, warning that the situation, if left unattended, could destabilise the oil and gas industry and threaten national energy security
However, in a statement on Saturday, the Dangote Refinery described the PENGASSAN directive as “a brazen display of lawlessness and criminality,” warning that the move could plunge country into widespread fuel scarcity and disrupt the availability of key petroleum products, including petrol, aviation fuel, kerosene, diesel, and cooking gas.
Dangote Refinery in the statement noted that PENGASSAN had on 26 September instructed its members in various multinational oil companies and subsidiaries, including TotalEnergies, Seplat, Renaissance, Chevron, Oando, Shell Nigeria Gas, and NGIC to halt crude oil loading operations and cut off gas supply to the facility “with immediate effect.”
The refinery stressed that the union has no legal authority to interfere with contracts signed between the refinery and its suppliers, insisting that such interference amounts to “economic sabotage” against both the company and the Nigerian state.
“This is a brazen, albeit shocking display of lawlessness and criminality by PENGASSAN. Absolutely no law gives PENGASSAN the right to direct its branches to “cut off” gas and crude oil supplies to Dangote Refinery or at all. There is also no law in our statute books that would support or enable the PENGASSAN branches having to “cut off” gas and crude oil supplies to Dangote Refinery or at all,” the statement reads.
“Besides, it constitutes a criminal conduct for PENGASSAN or its members to disrupt and/or interfere howsoever in the contract between Dangote Refinery and its various vendors for the supply of gas and crude oil to the Refinery. Those supply contracts were not entered into with PENGASSAN; they were entered into by Dangote Refinery with third party vendors and suppliers and PENGASSAN has no right whatsoever to disrupt and/or interfere with the performance of those contracts”.
It noted that PENGASSAN needs to be reminded that Nigeria is governed by laws.
“Our laws do not brook self-help and mob action that could introduce mayhem and chaos and easily translate into anarchy,” it added.
Dangote Petroleum Refinery, world’s largest single-train refinery and one of Nigeria’s highest taxpayers, argued that the directive undermines investor confidence and threatens revenues accruing to federal and state governments. The company also described the refinery as a strategic national asset that should be safeguarded rather than targeted.
“We are, by this write-up, drawing the attention of the Federal Government and its security and law enforcement agencies – as well as all other levels of governments in Nigeria – to this criminal, lawless, reckless and irresponsible conduct of PENGASSAN and calling on them – the Federal Government and its agencies, in particular – to call the Association to order. PENGASSAN has no right to introduce anarchy and mayhem into our society. The Association is not above the law, and it must not be allowed to believe that it is or behave as if it is,” it said
The statement further criticised the union for what it called “a contradictory stance,” noting that while PENGASSAN had earlier pledged to pursue legal action against the refinery, it “abandoned the path of lawfulness and embraced mob action.”
The refinery noted that apart from the lawlessness and criminality inherent in the PENGASSAN’s instruction to its branches, the Association’s directive amounts to economic sabotage at multiple levels.
“In plain language, PENGASSAN has directed its branches to disrupt and stop the supply of petroleum products from the Dangote Refinery to Nigerians. The products that would be disrupted and stopped include but are not limited to aviation fuel, petrol, kerosene, diesel and cooking gas – all products that are used and required by all stripes of Nigerians and persons living in Nigeria, whether high and mighty or lowly and ordinary.
“In what circumstance would it be justified for PENGASSAN to so disrupt and introduce insufferable hardship into the living conditions of Nigerians? None that we can see. The follow up question is, in whose interest and on whose behalf is PENGASSAN directing and intending to inflict such anarchic and criminal disruption upon the Nigerian society and persons living in Nigeria? Most certainly, not in the interest of the Nigerian State and/or the Nigerian public and citizens,” it added.
It stressed that it is also economic sabotage against the Nigerian State at multiple levels as the Dangote Refinery is the only refinery of its type in Africa and ordinarily should be the pride of all Nigerians as well as the governments of Nigeria.
“It should ordinarily have special protection and status and indeed qualifies as a strategic national asset. An irreparable injury to the Dangote Refinery such as PENGASSAN has directed constitutes a national embarrassment to all of us. The directive is a disincentive to external investors who ordinarily would have been encouraged by the success of Dangote Refinery to contemplate investing in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector or generally. PENGASSAN may also not be aware that Dangote Refinery is one of the largest contributors to the revenue purse of the Nigerian governments – both Federal and sub-nationals. That contribution is currently threatened by PENGASSAN and would of course be paused if and as soon as and for as long as the PENGASSAN directive is implemented by its branches,” it added.
Calling on the federal government and security agencies to intervene, the company urged Nigerians to resist any attempt to disrupt refinery operations, warning that compliance with the directive would cause “irreparable hardship” for households and businesses nationwide.
“We are also calling on all Nigerians to take note of the unquantifiable and irredeemable hardship which PENGASSAN wishes to inflict on all of us. There is no Nigerian household that does not use or need the petroleum products which PENGASSAN has now directed its branches, by fiat, to withdraw from the Nigerian market – again, we list some of them: petrol, cooking gas, diesel, kerosene and aviation fuel. The production and supply of these products by Dangote Refinery would cease if the PENGASSAN cabal is allowed or permitted to enforce its lawless and criminal “directive.”
“The Association must not be allowed to ride roughshod on Nigerians. The repercussions from the PENGASSAN directive would affect and inflict harm on all Nigerians This is therefore a fight for all Nigerians,” the statement concluded.
