Dangote Petroleum Refinery has strongly rejected allegations that its refined petroleum products are exported to Lomé, Togo, and later re-imported into Nigeria.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the refinery described the claims as “a web of falsehoods,” “baseless,” and “unsubstantiated,” arguing they lack commercial logic and contradict its core business objectives of boosting local production and achieving energy self-sufficiency.

The refinery emphasized that its sales contracts and tender terms explicitly prohibit buyers from reselling or re-importing the products back into Nigeria. It further noted that available trade data and the high costs of round-trip shipping (estimated at US$68–90 per ton) make such a scheme economically unviable.

The allegations surfaced amid reports suggesting that a significant portion of Nigeria’s seaborne fuel imports between March and May 2026 originated from Dangote products rerouted through the offshore ship-to-ship trading hub in Lomé.

Some marketers claimed pricing differences made it cheaper to buy from foreign traders via Togo.

Dangote Refinery dismissed these assertions, insisting there is no evidence to support them and reaffirming its commitment to supplying high-quality fuels directly to the Nigerian market at competitive prices.

The development highlights ongoing tensions as the refinery continues to reduce Nigeria’s reliance on fuel imports.

Photo: Winners of the CANEX Junior Chef Competition display their prizes during IATF2025 in Algeria.

The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), through its Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX) programme, has opened applications for the 2026 edition of the CANEX WKND 2026 Junior Chef Competition.

The competition invites Nigeria’s most promising junior culinary talents, aged 16 to 21, to showcase their creativity, technical skills, and cultural storytelling at the CANEX WKND 2026, set to hold from 5 to 8, November 2026, in Lagos, Nigeria.

Now in its second edition, the competition builds on the landmark debut in Algiers, Algeria, during IATF2025, with Fatma Zohra Bendjelida crowned the inaugural winner.

This year, the spotlight turns to Nigeria’s next generation of culinary talents.

Eight aspiring young chefs will earn their place on the live stage at CANEX WKND in Lagos, where they will transform African culinary heritage into bold, signature creations; making dishes that honour the flavours, traditions, and stories of the continent while presenting a fresh, fearless voice in African gastronomy.

Photo: Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison/ Getty images

Oracle shed about 21,000 roles globally in the last year as the US technology giant reshapes its business around artificial intelligence (AI), the firm’s latest annual report shows.

The software and cloud computing firm says it had around 141,000 full-time employees as of 31 May 2026, down from about 162,000 workers at the same time last year.

The “deployment of AI technologies across our operations have resulted, and may continue to result, in reductions to our workforce,” the report says.

The cuts, which amount to about 13% of Oracle’s workforce, are part of a wider trend among tech firms as they spend hundreds of billions of dollars on building AI infrastructure like data centres.