The National Industrial Court in Abuja has stepped in dramatically to avert what could have been a crippling blow to Nigeria’s energy supply chain, restraining the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) and other key regulatory agencies from halting crude and gas supply to the $20 billion Dangote Petroleum Refinery.
Justice Emmanuel Subilim, ruling on an ex parte application filed by Dangote Refinery, granted an interim order stopping PENGASSAN, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) from carrying out threats to shut off supply to the mega facility.
The court intervention followed growing labour unrest after Dangote Refinery announced a reorganisation at its Lekki plant, which allegedly led to the termination of some staff. Reports circulated online that over 800 Nigerian workers were dismissed for unionising, sparking outrage from PENGASSAN, which swiftly vowed to cripple operations unless the affected workers were reinstated.
However, counsel to the refinery, Senior Advocate of Nigeria George Ibrahim, insisted before the court that the claims were grossly exaggerated. He explained that Dangote Refinery maintains a workforce of over 3,000 Nigerians and that only a negligible number of staff were affected due to acts of sabotage at the facility that posed “grave health and safety risks.”
According to him, the management was compelled to take decisive action to safeguard lives and assets. Ibrahim further stressed that the refinery remains committed to workers’ constitutional right to unionize but would not compromise on issues of safety and sabotage.
He told the court that despite management’s clarification, PENGASSAN had issued a stern warning through its General Secretary, Comrade Lumumba Ighotemu Okugbawa, threatening to ground the refinery if its demands were not met.
In his brief ruling, Justice Subilim held that the “balance of convenience” strongly favoured Dangote Refinery, warning that an escalation of the dispute could irreparably damage business operations and cripple the provision of essential services to Nigerians.
The judge ordered that all defendants be immediately served with the restraining order and a motion on notice, stressing that industrial peace must be preserved pending determination of the substantive suit. The interim order, however, is to last for seven days only.
The matter has been adjourned to October 13 for hearing of the motion on notice.
With this ruling, the court has temporarily defused a ticking time bomb that threatened to disrupt fuel and gas supplies nationwide, while also keeping the spotlight firmly on the looming showdown between Africa’s largest refinery and one of Nigeria’s most powerful unions.
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