Nigeria can become a refining hub, saves Africa’s $17bn petrol products imports – Dangote

Nigeria can become a refining hub, saves Africa’s $17bn petrol products imports – Dangote

Aliko Dangote says Nigeria must enhance its crude oil production capacity and effectively manage its crude supply to ensure adequate feedstock for domestic refineries, in order to transit from a net importer to a net exporter of petroleum products. The Chairman of Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals Company Limited made this assertion during his keynote address at a summit held in Lagos by the Crude Oil Refinery Owners Association of Nigeria (CORAN).

He was represented at the event which attracted top government officials and key stakeholders from the midstream and downstream sectors by Engr. Mansur Ahmed, Group Executive Director of Dangote Industries limited. Addressing Nigeria’s potential as a refining hub, Dangote expressed concern that despite producing over 3.4 million barrels of crude oil per day, Africa imports around 3 million barrels of petroleum products daily. He noted that these imports, primarily from Europe, Russia, and other regions, are estimated to cost approximately $17 billion in 2023.

He said that Nigeria could capitalise on this situation to become a net exporter of refined petroleum products, as the markets would be more competitively served from Nigeria. “Both the crude oil and the petroleum products will travel shorter distances. The logistics costs of floating storage will be eliminated, and countries can purchase their petroleum product requirements just-in-time. Nigeria and Africa can become completely self-sufficient, and we can keep all the value on our shores. We have done it in cement, and we can certainly do it for petroleum products. “It is worth noting that the Dangote Refinery already produces sufficient diesel and jet fuel to meet Nigeria’s demand. We recently started the production of PMS and will soon ramp up to meet Nigeria’s needs.
Our refined products have been exported to diverse markets, including Europe, Brazil, the UK, the USA, Singapore, and South Korea,” he added.