The Chairman of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has revealed that the price of petrol from the Dangote Refinery will be determined by the Federal Executive Council (FEC), under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Dangote made this disclosure during a briefing in Lagos, emphasizing that the pricing arrangement has been designed and approved by FEC.
Speaking on the timeline for petrol supply, Dangote stated, “As soon as it is finalised, which he (Tinubu) is pushing, once we finish with NNPC, it can be today, it can be tomorrow, we are ready to roll into the market.”
He assured that the petrol produced by the refinery would be of world-class quality, capable of competing with products from other leading refineries across the globe.
Dangote hinted that an announcement regarding the supply of petrol would be made following a crucial meeting with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).
“Our products will start going to the market. Our gasoline can be in filling stations in the next 48 hours, depending on NNPC,” he added.
Dangote Refinery: A ‘Death Blow’ to Cabals, Says Otedola
Femi Otedola, Chairman of Geregu Power, has praised Aliko Dangote for revolutionizing petrol refining in Nigeria, describing the development as a “death blow” to the local cabals who have profited from Nigeria’s dependence on imported fuel.
Otedola, in his remarks, stated, “The days of relying on foreign powers for our fuel needs are over, thanks to your (Aliko Dangote) vision and determination.
You have delivered a decisive blow to the so-called local cabals who have grown wealthy by perpetuating Nigeria’s economic slavery.”
Otedola, who once dominated the depot business with his company Zenon, advised that “It is time to dismantle those depots and sell them as scrap while the market is still high.”
He predicted that the impact of Dangote’s refinery on the fuel import sector would be as transformative as his earlier revolution in Nigeria’s cement industry.
NMDPRA, NNPC Ink Deal on Crude Supply to Dangote Refinery
In a significant development, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has signed an agreement with NNPC Limited to supply crude oil to the Dangote Refinery in Naira.
According to a statement posted on NMDPRA’s X (formerly Twitter) handle, the refinery is set to supply an initial 25 million litres of petrol to the domestic market this September.
The refinery’s capacity is expected to increase to 30 million litres per day from October 2024.
“At the NMDPRA headquarters in Abuja, NNPCL reached an agreement to commence crude oil sale and supply to Dangote Refinery in local currency,” the statement read.
This agreement comes as Nigerians continue to face a severe nationwide petrol scarcity, worsened by NNPC Limited’s recent disclosure of a $6 billion debt.
Concrete Plans for Domestic Distribution and Export, Says Edwin
Devakumar Edwin, Vice President of Oil and Gas at Dangote Industries Limited, confirmed that the refinery has commenced petrol production, adding that the company is ready to flood the domestic market with petrol.
“We have been exporting aviation fuel, we have been producing kerosene, we have been producing diesel, but yesterday, we started the production of petrol. So, that was the last stage,” Edwin explained.
He further noted, “There has been a kind of blockade from lifting our products within the country. The traders have been trying to block it. We have been exporting our petroleum products.
We are ready to pump in petrol as much as possible to the country. But if the traders do not buy the product, we will end up exporting it.”
