Senator Asuquo Ekpeyong, in a matter of urgent national importance, observed that on June 16, 2024, a report revealed that 12 diesel cargoes conveying a total of 660 kilotons of diesel, were exported by refineries to offshore Lome, Togo for further distribution to West African markets, mainly Nigeria.
Ekpeyong disclosed that; even though the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority recently revised the standards of diesel importation into Nigeria in line with the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021, it has been incapable of enforcing compliance with the standards. Ekpeyong stressed that the NMDPRA has continued to issue import licences for diesel and jet, despite sufficient local production capacity.
The Upper Chamber asserted that those found culpable in the illicit act must face the wrath of the law.