President Bola Tinubu, on Tuesday, commended the implementation committee on the Naira-based sales of crude oil and refined products for doing a good job.
The president, who spoke at a meeting held at the State House, Abuja, said the idea of Naira for crude transactions was conceived to remove the exchange rate hurdle.
He charged the committee members to resolve any problems that would hamper the initiative.
Tinubu said: “Whatever solution we proffer in crude oil and refined products sales in Naira should not take us back to our experience in the last 40 years.
“There can be cost and revenue adjustment in the oil sector, but the issue is that the government will not have to go back to the old way of doing things.”
He said the various players in the oil sector, including the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) and the Dangote Refinery, should work to improve the economy and the livelihood of Nigerians.
The president urged stakeholders to look inward and consider supplying enough petrol and petroleum products for local consumption to stop the persistent reliance on importation.
“The market must determine what we are doing. Once you allow the market to determine the profit and loss, independent marketers and the government side can meet on the worksheet.
“I want the issues resolved without future waste of time.
“We can have energy security, and the motivation for Alhaji Aliko Dangote will not be defeated. It will be more predictable on a medium and long-term basis,” the president added.
On his part, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, said the administration’s groundbreaking steps to sell crude in Naira would not be reversed.
He said the government would not be involved in determining the rate of exchange for the oil sector.
The President and Chief Executive of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, told the president that the refinery had more than 500 million litres of fuel in reserve after supplying 400 million to the economy.
He said the refinery could collaborate with the other refineries managed by NNPCL to meet an estimated 32 million litres of local petrol needs.