• Umar assures of certainty, predictability in regulatory environment
•Tolorunse says regulator will build confidence, ensure fairness
Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, yesterday warned oil marketers against exploiting the country’s deregulated petroleum market for excessive profits, stressing that the federal government would not allow deregulation to become a licence for profiteering at the expense of Nigerian consumers.
Lokpobiri, who spoke at the 2026 Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) General Counsel and Legal Advisers Forum in Abuja, maintained that while the government remained committed to a market-driven downstream sector, the regulator retained the statutory responsibility to ensure fairness, consumer protection and strict compliance with the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
