ABSTRACT

This paper examines the impact of petroleum product importation policies on the development of modular refineries in Nigeria between 2012 and 2023. It investigates the relationship between import license allocation, crude oil for fuel swap deals, and investors in modular refineries. The research questions whether unaccountable subsidisation of petroleum products imports undermines investment in modular refinery development and human capital development in Nigeria's downstream petroleum industry. The findings suggest that the nonchalant attitude of not fixing state-owned refineries and undermining modular refinery development through reprehensible policies is deliberate due to primitive accumulation through subsidies.