China National Petroleum Corp’s (CNPC) oil refinery in Niger is continuing to limit production to the domestic market rather than for export, despite resuming after a 45-day shutdown, its union and a company official said.

The Soraz refinery, built as a venture between CNPC and Niger’s government, has a capacity of 20,000 barrels a day (bpd), but has never reached that figure.

Its head of communication Magagi Dada told local television it had restarted after a technical shutdown.

“Output has restarted at Soraz,” the refinery’s head of communication, Magagi Dada, told local television. “The refinery has had a technical shutdown since mid-August but the problem has been fixed.”

Export sales, however, remain suspended because of a dispute between the refinery and Niger’s state-owned oil firm Sonidep over the price paid for crude oil.

CNPC’s original agreement with the state fixed a purchase price of $67 per barrel for crude supplied to Soraz. CNPC negotiated a price of $57 in July, but that figure is still well above current world crude prices.

Exports were suspended over the summer due to the price row.

“Production has certainly begun again, but a power struggle between Soraz and Sonidep continues over exports,” the union said in a statement, noting production by the refinery was therefore running at a low level. “This quantity (of production) cannot even sustain the refinery’s costs, let alone make a profit,” it said.

Soraz spokesman Magagi Dada confirmed the refinery was limiting production to the domestic market. “The situation on the export front has not changed,” he said.

Under the terms of the agreement between CNPC and Niger, 7,000 bpd are reserved for the domestic market, with the rest available for export.