Nigerians and the Romance With Ignorance

By Ernest Omoarelojie 

I wrote a piece recently about the Dangote Refinery's decision to import crude oil from the US. In the main, I expressed huge concerns about my belief that the decision by the outfit to import crude oil from offshore didn't make any sense. I held the view then in the light of my belief that Nigeria has abundance of crude oil and so no one could justifiably explain why a Nigerian outfit would import same commodity offshore.

Even now that I have reasons to believe that my concerns were mainly borne out of ignorance, I have no doubt that millions of Nigerians share the same view, unaware that the need was well informed. How sad it is to romance ignorance!

Of course I didn't get to know until curiosity led me in making specific enquiries from a media colleague who happens to be very versed in matters concerning the petroleum sector. As quickly as I fielded my questions, he began by lecturing me on issues involved. 

First of all, he explained the various types of crude required for the production of the different petroleum derivatives. In the main, he surmised that Nigeria as what is known in the sector as Light Crude, also referred to as Sweet Crude, typically found in the Bonny Light. A little research informed me that because it is lighter or less dense because of its light hydrocarbon content, the Sweet Crude is required to produce high-value petroleum derivatives, including gasoline, diesel fuel, jet fuel, etc. I also learnt it is suited for the products because it requires simple distillation process. 

He also explained that certain other brands of crude, including the Heavy Crude, needed for the production of other petroleum derivatives. However, as the name implies, one can guess that its uses are different from those of the Light Sweet. A little research opened them to me.

Although Heavy Crude could be refined to produce transportation fuel, it is more adaptable to the production of feedstock for plastics, paraffin, wax, road surfacing and petrochemicals, including acetylene, propane, ethane, benzene, ethylene, methane and hydrogen. 

My colleague went on to further explain that a number of the countries local refineries, the dead ones and those being revived, including the brand new Dangote, have the capacity to utilize both the Light and Heavy Crude for the production of their different derivatives. That he explained, is the reason the Port Harcourt refinery, for instance, had to depend on Venezuela, a major producer, to import a whooping 40 per cent of its requirements. For the same reason, Dangote had to rely on import from the US, another major producer. 

Was my seeming ignorance cleared?

Largely, he clearly my ignorance. Except that the explanation he provided also got me wondering the more. For instance, I wondered why the NNPCL or other institutions involved in petroleum product business never saw the need to educate Nigerians about the common sense realities in the petroleum sector. It also got me wondering whether not enlightening Nigerians is part of a broader but deliberate policy to keep their ignorance running, for reasons we can't fathom.

I really have not found the answers to my wonders. But in the meantime, I am feeling obliged to put up this piece on the little information I received from my colleague because of a post I chanced upon in X earlier today. Written by a renowned and respected blogger whose views and publications in the social media space attract Helluva reviews and attention. His post is about the same issue under review here. Even though the content of his post appeared rather misleading, many of his fans lapped it up and applauded him for his wealth of knowledge.

Among others, he posited that the reason behind Dangote Refinery's crude oil import decision stems from the profit making standpoint. According to him, the outfit could not have acted otherwise because as a business concern, it must consider viable options from which it can make the most profit. In other words, importing from the US, based on the Dollar reality, however adverse it is to the Nigerian public, offers it the most viable option that can raise its profit margins.

Secondly, he argued that the refinery could not have acted otherwise given the fact that Nigeria has already sold out, upfront, its crude oil stock and received upfront payment for same, leaving none for local production. The only other option, he went on, is for local refineries, including the publicly owned, to source their requirements offshore.

He did not make any allusion to the differences between the Nigerian crude and what derivatives it can produce. Neither did he say anything about the brand of crude the country does not have but is required to produce petroleum derivatives needed locally. His was more about conspiracy theory hinged largely on ignorance. 

This level of ignorance pervades every other sector of our collective life as a people and nation. It clearly represents how millions of Nigerians are misled from trusting information sources that are conveyor belts for mischief and other destructive motives. Whatever the case is, I am of the view that the time has come for relevant authorities to come to terms with the idea of producing relevant information on sundry subjects with national bearings. Well considered, it will provide the needed concincing information to reduce the level of ignorance peddled as truth even by those who ought to know better. Unless, of course, these authorities are of the view that Nigerians are, for whatever reason, better off left in floating ignorance