Africa’s largest oil refinery, the Dangote Refinery, has officially commenced petrol production, marking a significant milestone in Nigeria’s energy sector.
Located near Lagos, the refinery can process 650,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil and is expected to supply 25 million liters of petrol daily starting this September, with a planned increase to 30 million liters daily in October, according to the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
Aliko Dangote, Chairman of Dangote Industries Limited, announced the commencement of production at a news conference, emphasizing the refinery’s ability to compete globally in terms of product quality.
“We will make sure that nobody will beat us in terms of quality,” Dangote stated. He also praised the government’s “naira for crude” policy, which allows the refinery to purchase crude oil in local currency, a move expected to stabilize the naira by reducing the demand for dollars.
The refinery, which began operations in January with the production of diesel and jet fuel, promises to ease Nigeria’s reliance on imported oil products.
Devakumar Edwin, Vice President at Dangote Industries, confirmed that state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) would be the sole buyer of the petrol, easing the company’s current struggles with fuel supply due to debt.
—Ezinwanne Onwuka reports for TruthNigeria from Abuja.
