A Nigerian court ordered the country’s downstream petroleum regulator to continue issuing fuel import licences and related permits to three oil marketing firms, saying any refusal would be inconsistent with provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), court documents showed on Monday.
“The consequences of non-compliance with the PIA and relevant laws make any exercise by the Authority in respect to import licences null and void,” said judge Inyang Ekwo of the federal high court in the capital Abuja.
Filed in June by Matrix Energy, AA Rano and AYM Shafa, the lawsuit challenges the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority’s handling of fuel import licences.
The marketers told the court they had invested more than $20 billion in infrastructure, logistics and retail networks to support their licensed fuel distribution businesses across Nigeria.
