The Dangote Petroleum Refinery has replied to claims from oil marketers who say the plant cannot meet Nigeria’s fuel needs, saying the refinery is fully capable of supplying both local and foreign markets.
The refinery made this known after the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria said the refinery was not meeting even the reduced fuel demand in the country.
Speaking anonymously, a senior Dangote official told the PUNCH, “We produce more than enough fuel for Nigeria. We are also exporting to other countries. So when marketers say we can’t meet local needs, it’s not true.”
He added that for many years, fuel consumption figures were inflated under the fuel subsidy regime. “We will soon know the real daily consumption of fuel in this country. The numbers given in the past were not accurate,” he said.
Another Dangote official warned that some marketers want to frustrate President Bola Tinubu’s policy to stop importing goods that are already being produced in Nigeria.
“The only way to grow the economy is to use what we produce here. But some importers will fight this because it affects their profits,” the official said.
DAPPMAN’s Executive Secretary, Olufemi Adewole, said marketers were not part of any ‘cabal’, but were only trying to keep their businesses alive by importing fuel when local supply is not enough.
He said, “It is we, the private depot owners, that have been meeting the needs of Nigerians. The Dangote refinery is not yet producing enough to meet local demand.”
Adewole also accused the refinery of trying to create a monopoly in the market. He said price changes by the refinery, especially after products have already been bought, have caused losses for many marketers.
“We didn’t make noise about it, but we’ve been suffering quietly,” he said.
In response, the Dangote official said, “Some of these marketers do not care about the ordinary Nigerian. They were making money during the subsidy era through round-tripping. Now that the game has changed, they are not happy.”
A consultant working with the refinery asked how marketers got the idea that the refinery didn’t have enough stock. “They should first ask themselves how they know what we have before making such claims,” he said.
Aliko Dangote, the owner of the refinery, also spoke recently about these challenges. He said some powerful individuals who made billions from fuel imports are trying to fight the refinery’s success.
“There are groups who don’t want this refinery to work. They made huge money from subsidised fuel and are funding resistance. But I have been fighting all my life. I will win this fight too,” Dangote said.
According to Davakumar Edwin, Vice President of Dangote Group, the refinery produces:
* 57 million litres of petrol daily
* 20 million litres of jet fuel
* 37 million litres of diesel
He explained that Nigeria only consumes 46 million litres of petrol daily, meaning the remaining products can be exported.
“The refinery can produce 104 million litres of fuel every day. We can store large volumes for days. There are 177 tanks with a total capacity of over 4.7 billion litres,” Edwin said.
Data from February showed the refinery supplied:
* 33 million litres of petrol daily
* 10 million litres of diesel
* 3 million litres of aviation fuel
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) said in April that daily petrol imports dropped from 44.6 million litres to 14.7 million litres.
However, another official from the same agency, Ogbugo Ukoha, said local refineries are still not producing up to 50% of Nigeria’s fuel needs, and the rest comes from imports.
These statements have caused confusion about Nigeria’s actual daily petrol use.
As the debate continues, Dangote insists that his refinery will show the real fuel usage in Nigeria and help end fuel smuggling and fake supply claims.
“With this refinery, we can now track every truck and every litre. Nigerians will soon know the truth about how much we really consume,” he said.
