Court Stops PENGASSAN Strike as Oil Sector Grinds to Halt

…NNPCL, NUPRC, NMDPRA shut down nationwide over row with Dangote refinery

By John Paul

Nigeria’s oil sector was thrown into turmoil yesterday as a nationwide strike by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) shut down operations at the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA). But in a major relief for Africa’s biggest refinery, the National Industrial Court in Abuja issued an interim order restraining the union from cutting crude and gas supply to the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE.

Justice Emmanuel Subilim, ruling on an ex-parte application filed by the refinery, said the strike posed grave risks to both business operations and the delivery of essential services to Nigerians. The order, which will last for seven days pending further hearing, directed that PENGASSAN and its allies immediately desist from any actions that could cripple the refinery’s activities.

Senior Advocate of Nigeria, George Ibrahim, who argued the case, told the court that recent acts of sabotage at the plant had raised serious health and safety concerns. He said management had no choice but to reorganise operations, a decision that led to the dismissal of some staff in a memo dated September 25, 2025. He noted that the union retaliated the next day with threats to bring the refinery to its knees unless the affected workers, estimated at over 800, were recalled.

Justice Subilim, in granting the injunction, held that the balance of convenience was clearly in favour of the refinery. “The continuation of the strike would irreparably damage its business and cripple the provision of essential services to the Nigerian public,” he ruled. The case was adjourned to October 13 for hearing of the substantive motion.

Despite the restraining order, PENGASSAN pressed ahead with its strike, paralysing operations at key petroleum regulatory agencies nationwide. At NUPRC headquarters in Abuja, the gates were locked and workers denied access. A similar scene played out at the NMDPRA, where business was completely grounded. Confirming full compliance, PENGASSAN chairman at the authority, Tony Iziogba, declared: “We have achieved 100 per cent compliance.”

The union insisted its action was triggered by the alleged unjust dismissal of 800 workers at the refinery, accusing management of flouting labour laws by sacking staff for joining the union and replacing them with foreigners. In a resolution signed by its General Secretary, Lumumba Okugbawa, the union ordered an immediate halt to crude and gas supplies to the refinery and instructed international oil companies to ramp down production.

The directive has rattled the energy sector, with oil marketers warning of looming fuel shortages and price hikes if the dispute drags on. Industry analysts say the risks extend beyond fuel distribution, with electricity generation also threatened, given the role of gas in power supply.

For now, Dangote Refinery has secured a vital breather from the courts, a move seen by many as crucial in protecting a multi-billion-dollar national asset from being crippled. Nigerians, meanwhile, are watching closely, hoping that the country’s largest private refinery can stay on stream in the face of the labour unrest.