In a move signalling a shift from its traditional reliance on Nigerian, African, and United States crude grades, the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals (DPRP) has purchased two cargoes of crude oil from the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Biztellers reports that this follows the opening of the Strait of Hormuz, and is its first-ever procurement of Middle Eastern crude as the company expands its feedstock sources amid persistent domestic supply constraints.

According to a report by S&P Global Commodity Insights, two cargoes will be the first sourced by the 700,000-barrels-per-day refinery from any Middle Eastern supplier.

The report added that the purchases followed the resumption of oil exports from the Middle East after the United States and Iran reached an interim peace agreement that restored confidence in shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

The refinery, designed primarily to process Nigeria’s light sweet crude, has increasingly diversified its crude slate as operations ramp up. S&P Global reported that an agreement between the refinery and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) had guaranteed the supply of between 13 and 15 cargoes of Nigerian crude monthly in naira, helping the refinery reduce its foreign exchange exposure.

However, the arrangement has faced challenges due to inadequate crude availability and operational issues at export terminals.

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According to the report, the Dangote Refinery Chief Executive Officer David Bird had previously disclosed that these constraints had compelled the company to seek additional crude sources outside Nigeria.

The report also added that the refinery’s expansion plans would further increase its crude requirements. Dangote plans to double the refinery’s processing capacity to 1.4 million barrels per day by the end of 2028, a level that would enable it to process about 80 percent of Nigeria’s recent crude oil production in a single day.

According to S&P Global, the refinery has been broadening the range of crude grades it processes as part of its ambition to operate as a fully merchant refinery.

The report noted that in 2025, about 70 percent of the refinery’s crude imports came from Nigeria, while 24 per cent originated from the United States.

The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has concluded a two-week Oil and Gas Logistics and SMEs Readiness Development Programme for 120 youths and indigenous businesses in Bayelsa State.

Biztellers reports that the training is aimed at equipping the beneficiaries with the skills, industry knowledge and compliance requirements needed to compete effectively in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.

The programme, implemented by Tenacles Resource Limited, combined a five-day online orientation with intensive physical training in Yenagoa, exposing participants to opportunities across the oil and gas value chain while preparing them to meet industry standards.

During the closing ceremony on Saturday in Yenagoa, the Executive Director of Tenacles Resource Limited, Tonye Briggs, explained that the initiative was designed to empower youths, entrepreneurs and indigenous businesses from oil-producing communities and other parts of Bayelsa State to become active players in the country’s petroleum industry.

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Briggs explained that the programme commenced with an online screening and orientation phase that introduced participants to the objectives of the training and the expectations of the NCDMB.

According to him, the online sessions focused on engagement with operators in the oil and gas sector, regulatory compliance, logistics and inventory management, and an overview of Nigeria’s petroleum industry.

He noted that the physical training built on the online sessions by providing practical knowledge on oil and gas logistics, inventory management, registration on the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Joint Qualification System and NipeX portals, as well as the compliance standards required to participate in the industry.

According to Briggs, participants also took part in a business competition in which three outstanding businesses were selected to receive support in obtaining the compliance documents required for sustainable participation in the sector.

He added that all participants were registered on the NCDMB portal and would benefit from a four-month mentorship and coaching programme that would expose them to job vacancies, business opportunities and industry updates.

“We have been implementing a two-week Oil and Gas Logistics and SMEs Readiness Development Programme on behalf of the NCDMB to empower youths and indigenous businesses from Bayelsa State.

“The participants have been equipped with knowledge on engaging operators, meeting compliance standards and identifying opportunities within the logistics and inventory space.

“We have also registered them on the NCDMB portal and established a four-month coaching platform to expose them to opportunities and support their growth”, Briggs said.

Briggs commended the Executive Secretary of the NCDMB, Felix Ogbe, for sustaining initiatives that promote indigenous participation in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, expressing confidence that similar programmes would benefit more Nigerians across the country.

Delivering the keynote address, the Permanent Secretary, Bayelsa State Ministry of Labour, Employment and Productivity, Edmund Dagogo, urged participants to maximise the opportunity provided by the training by applying the knowledge acquired to build sustainable businesses and careers within the oil and gas sector.

He commended the collaboration between the NCDMB, Tenacles Resource Limited and the Bayelsa State Government, noting that the programme would help increase local participation in the nation’s petroleum industry.

Participants described the training as transformational, saying it changed their perception of opportunities available in the oil and gas sector.

One of the participants, Miss Douye Jumbo, said the programme broadened her understanding of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act, 2010, and dispelled the notion that only multinational companies could participate in the industry.

Another participant, Excellent David Siri, described the programme as an eye-opener, noting that it demonstrated that opportunities in the oil and gas sector extend beyond technical professions.

Siri, a pipeline welder specialising in Shielded Metal Arc Welding, said artisans, traders and entrepreneurs could also participate in the industry’s supply chain, provided they possessed relevant skills, operated legitimate businesses and met regulatory requirements.

At the closing ceremony, participants received certificates, laptops and mentorship support to facilitate their registration on the NOGIC JQS platform and enhance the practical application of the knowledge gained during the training.

The programme forms part of the NCDMB’s broader strategy to strengthen local content development by building the capacity of youths and indigenous businesses in oil-producing communities, enabling them to participate more competitively in Nigeria’s oil and gas value chain.

FirstBank and its lending allies are now at the risk of escalating financial penalties because of the collapse of their attempt to reassign the ongoing Nestoil and Neconde matter.

The compounded legal and financial risks from the matter could rise to a whopping $1.8 billion damages claim against the consortium of lenders.

The setback comes on the heels of a Supreme Court judgment that dealt a significant blow to the lenders’ litigation strategy.

In its decision in Neconde Energy Ltd. v. FBNQuest Merchant Bank Ltd & Ors., the apex court rejected efforts that sought to halt proceedings and questioned the motives behind attempts to delay a case originally initiated by the lenders themselves.

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Relying on that judgment, the Honourable Chief Judge reportedly dismissed the application for reassignment, finding no basis to remove the trial judge. The decision has effectively shut the door on what critics described as an attempt to derail the proceedings.

With that strategy defeated, attention is now shifting to the potentially enormous consequences facing the banks.

Nestoil and Neconde are commencing the process of pursuing approximately $1.8 billion in damages against FBNQuest Merchant Bank, First Trustees, FirstBank, UBA, Access Bank, Zenith Bank, the Receiver-Manager and other parties over alleged disruption of oil production operations.

The companies are expected to contend that actions taken by the lenders and their Receiver severely impaired production activities, causing output to fall from about 60,000 barrels per day to below 40,000 barrels per day, while also disrupting critical drilling and field development programmes.

Industry observers note that if successfully pursued, the claim could rank among the most significant damages actions arising from a commercial banking dispute in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.

Adding to the mounting legal pressure, Drawcok Estate Limited has already filed a N100 billion damages suit against FBNQuest Merchant Bank, First Trustees, the Receiver-Manager and others over the alleged wrongful takeover and occupation of its Victoria Island properties.

The growing wave of litigation marks a dramatic reversal in fortunes for the lenders. What began as an aggressive debt recovery exercise is increasingly exposing the banks themselves to substantial legal liability, with claims now running into billions of dollars and tens of billions of naira.

As the Supreme Court’s criticism continues to reverberate through the proceedings, the failed reassignment bid may ultimately be remembered as the moment the dispute shifted from an enforcement action against Nestoil to a potentially costly reckoning for the banks behind it.