Chief Executive Aliko Dangote said the 650,000-bpd capacity refinery, which is the largest in Africa, had only received five crude cargoes from state oil firm NNPC since it started operating earlier this year, instead of the 15 it expected.
"That is why we went ahead and bought some Brazilian crude, we also got U.S. crude. Anytime we go to IOCs (international oil companies) they say go to brokers," Dangote, Africa's richest man, said during a tour of the facility on the outskirts of Lagos.
He added that brokers were charging a $4 mark-up per barrel of crude.
Gasoline exchange
NNPC had in the past agreed to supply the refinery 300,000 bpd but it is struggling with low production and some of its crude is being exchanged for gasoline imports, Reuters news agency reports.
Nigeria is one of world's top oil producers, but relies on importation of refined petroleum products due to insufficient local refining. State-owned refineries have collapsed over the years.
The Dangote refinery, built at a cost of $20 billion, began production in January after several years of delays.
There has been hope that it would plug the gap in refining oil in Nigeria, Africa's economic powerhouse.
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