Nigeria’s national oil company has warned that the country suffered steep losses in crude, gas, and power supply during the three-day strike by senior oil workers, describing the disruption as a major threat to energy security.
In a letter to regulators and security chiefs, the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Bashir Ojulari, said the industrial action led to the deferment of 283,000 barrels of crude oil a day, 1.7 billion standard cubic feet of gas daily, and more than 1,200 megawatts of power generation. That equates to about 16% of Nigeria’s oil output, 30% of marketed gas, and 20% of electricity supply.
The strike, led by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), was triggered by a bitter dispute with the Dangote Petroleum Refinery over alleged mass sackings, forced transfers, and the replacement of Nigerian workers with foreign staff—claims the company denies. The shutdown of oil terminals, gas plants, and power facilities choked off vital revenues in what Ojulari described as “systemic risks to national energy security and stability.”
While the Federal Government’s intervention has persuaded PENGASSAN to suspend its nationwide action, the union warned the truce was temporary and insisted it would resume without notice if agreements were breached.
Festus Osifo, PENGASSAN’s president, told reporters in Abuja that the decision to suspend the strike was “out of respect for government institutions” rather than confidence in Dangote’s management. “We truly don’t believe he will keep to his side of the bargain,” he said, accusing the refinery of showing contempt for workers’ rights and union freedoms.
Ojulari’s letter detailed how the strike had already stalled crude lifting operations, delayed maintenance programmes, and triggered demurrage costs at export terminals. He warned that the financial toll was compounding quickly, with NNPCL cashflows under immediate pressure.
The refinery’s management insists that recent workforce changes were operational, not anti-union, while the union maintains that the dispute centres on fundamental rights to association, fair pay, and welfare.
PENGASSAN dismissed claims that the strike was about union dues, calling such suggestions “laughable”. “This fight is not about dues. It is about the freedom of association and the welfare of our members,” Osifo said, adding that workers joined the union to improve their conditions in line with global oil industry standards.
The federal government has not disclosed the details of the communique that ended the walkout, but the union said it remained dissatisfied with its contents. “We are only suspending, not calling off this strike,” Osifo stressed.
With oil and gas accounting for more than 90% of Nigeria’s foreign exchange earnings, the episode has underlined the fragility of the country’s energy sector and the wider economic risks posed by industrial disputes at a time of already strained revenues.
