Dangote Industries Limited, led by its President and CEO Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has announced that the Dangote Petroleum Refinery will be listed on the Nigerian Exchange by the end of March 2025. This comes alongside a new timeline for the supply of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, which has been postponed to August 2024 from the previously scheduled July date.
During a media tour of the Dangote Refinery and Fertilizer plants in Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos, Dangote revealed that the refinery has resolved its crude oil supply issues with the assistance of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and the Federal Government. This resolution is expected to enable the refinery to roll out its petrol supply as planned.
Listing and Operational Updates
“We plan to list the refinery and petrochemical units before the end of the first quarter next year,” stated Dangote. He also clarified that the Federal Government owns a 7.2% stake in the refinery, contrary to the widely reported 20%.
The refinery has faced challenges with international oil companies (IOCs) over crude supply, with allegations that IOCs were increasing prices to hinder local crude purchases. However, these issues have now been addressed, paving the way for smoother operations.
Since beginning operations in early 2024, the refinery has been producing intermediate products such as polypropylene, naphtha, RCO, gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel. Full-scale production is set to ramp up, aiming for 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) by August 2024, 550,000 bpd by the end of the year, and reaching 650,000 bpd by early 2025. Annual revenue from the refinery is projected to exceed $26 billion.
Expanded Capabilities and Infrastructure
The refinery boasts significant infrastructure, including dedicated loading gantries with 86 loading bays and marine facilities for crude and product offtake. It also houses a 900-kilo tonne per annum polypropylene plant, a 36ktpa sulphur plant, and a 585ktpa carbon black production facility. Its total storage capacity of 4.5 billion litres can meet 20 days of crude requirements and 15 days of Nigeria’s petrol consumption.
Dangote Industries is also advancing several gas projects. These include a 200km gas pipeline built in partnership with NGIC, a 3 billion cubic feet East-West Gas Gathering System offshore pipeline, a 600 million standard cubic feet onshore gas pipeline, and a 300mscf gas processing facility. These initiatives aim to stabilize gas pressure in the Escravos–Lagos Pipeline System and support further investments.
Impacts and Future Outlook
The operational commencement of the Dangote Refinery is poised to end Nigeria’s reliance on imported petrol. At the Africa CEO Summit in Rwanda, Dangote assured that the refinery would fulfill Nigeria’s petrol and diesel needs and cater to the aviation fuel demand across the continent, with potential exports to Brazil and Mexico.
With these developments, Dangote Industries is set to significantly impact the Nigerian economy, reducing dependency on imported fuels and boosting foreign exchange earnings through substantial exports.
