We have over N600bn worth of petrol in store – Dangote

Says refinery can meet 100% Nigeria’s daily consumption   President of Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), Aliko Dangote has revealed that Dangote Petroleum Refinery has enough Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) otherwise known as petrol in storage to sufficiently meet the local needs of Nigeria. Speaking at the weekend, Dangote disclosed that the oil refinery has “More […]

• Says refinery can meet 100% Nigeria’s daily consumption

 

President of Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), Aliko Dangote has revealed that Dangote Petroleum Refinery has enough Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) otherwise known as petrol in storage to sufficiently meet the local needs of Nigeria.

Speaking at the weekend, Dangote disclosed that the oil refinery has “More than half a billion litres of petroleum and over N600 billion worth of products in its tanks.”

This is just as the Zambian government has expressed strong interest in partnering with the refinery to address its energy needs and enhance fuel supply in the country.

Speaking after a tour of the refinery complex by a Zambian government delegation, led by the country’s Minister of Energy, Mr. Makozo Chikote, Dangote stated that the refinery project, like other projects in the past, is not for Nigeria alone.

Daily Trust reports that Dangote’s statement is coming amidst recent revelation by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) justifying the continued importation of fuel.

NMDPRA that local refinery only meets 50 per cent of daily fuel consumption, justifying the continued importation of Petroleum Motor Spirit (PMS) to meet the shortfall.

But Dangote speaking at the refinery over the weekend said its refinery alone can meet Nigeria’s daily petroleum consumption.

Dangote said, “…As we speak right now, we have more than half a billion litres. The refinery is producing enough refined products, like gasoline, diesel and kerosene, to meet 100 per cent of Nigeria’s requirements.

“This refinery is not only for Nigeria; it is for Africa. We must sustain the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) deal. We are trying to see how we trade with other African countries.”

The Zambian minister of energy said his takeaway from the Dangote Refinery working visit was that the President, Aliko Dangote, is truly focused on the bigger picture for Africa.

Chikote, who led a delegation of energy experts to the Dangote Petroleum Refinery to partner Zambia on energy solutions, expressed satisfaction and readiness to work with the African manufacturing giant.

After a tour of the Dangote complex at the Free Trade Zone, Ibeju Lekki, starting from the Single Point Mooring to the Dangote Jetty, the biggest fertiliser plant in Africa and the 650,000bpd largest single-train refinery in the world, he stated that the presentation by the Vice President, Oil and Gas of Dangote Industries Limited, Mr. Edwin Devakumar, made their hearts “jump”.

He stated that the presentation speaks to the challenges of his country, Zambia.

The energy minister added, “In Zambia, we created an environment for the private sector to participate in the growth and development of our country. Currently, 100 per cent of our petroleum is done by the private sector.

“We are targeting increased productivity in mining, agriculture, and other sectors. Your presentation is an immediate solution to our energy needs. We are trying to promote competition among our private players

“We are looking at Dangote coming on board, which would lead to efficient, reliable, quality, and competitive products, and we want these done like yesterday.

“Coming to the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, we have learned so many advantages of bringing many players for competition, which has improved the lives of the citizens.”

The Vice President of Dangote Industries Limited, Edwin Devakumar stated that the refinery produces the best quality products as its core business strategy.

“The project concept was to process the crude from Nigeria and add value. But we also wanted to provide some flexibility to process most of the African crudes and some of the Middle Eastern crudes,” Edwin said.

He added, “In another concept, what we did was maximum value extraction. That is a process where every barrel of crude which goes in, the value addition should be the best.”

According to Edwin, “The refinery can meet all our requirements. 44 per cent can meet the entire requirements of Nigeria, and 56 per cent of the production would be exported. Every day, we produce lighter products of 104 million litres; 57 million litres of petrol every day; 20 million litres of jet fuel; and 27 million litres of diesel production.