President of Dangote Refinery, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has announced that the refinery is on track to commence petrol production from August 2024, following the resolution of its crude oil supply issues with assistance from the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and the federal government.
Speaking to senior journalists in Lagos on Sunday during a guided tour of the refinery situated at the Lekki Free Trade Zone, Dangote disclosed that the recent challenges in crude supply affecting petrol production were resolved last week, thanks to government intervention.
Dangote Industries Limited (DIL) previously expressed concerns about international oil companies (IOCs) allegedly frustrating their efforts to procure crude. Devakumar Edwin, Vice President of Oil and Gas at DIL, highlighted these challenges to energy editors in June, stating, “While the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has been supportive in allocating crude, the IOCs have intentionally hindered our attempts to purchase local crude.
Their actions appear aimed at undermining our refinery’s operations, either by demanding unreasonable premiums or claiming crude availability issues. At times, we paid $6 above market prices, leading us to curtail production and resort to importing crude from as far as the US, which escalated our production costs.”
In addition to overcoming these supply hurdles and scheduling petrol production for August, Dangote also informed journalists that the refinery’s fertilizer unit would resume operations within two weeks. This move aims to meet the growing demand for fertilizer among farmers in Nigeria and across Africa.
Addressing over 70 journalists during the refinery tour, Dangote underscored the significant need for fertilizer and the company’s commitment to meeting these agricultural demands.
