LAGOS — President of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, has assured that the Dangote Petroleum Refinery has sufficient Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, to meet Nigeria’s domestic demand.
Speaking over the weekend, Dangote disclosed that the refinery has over half a billion litres of petroleum products in storage, valued at more than ₦600 billion.
“As we speak right now, we have more than half a billion litres,” he said. “The refinery is producing enough refined products, like gasoline, diesel, and kerosene, to meet 100 percent of Nigeria’s requirements.”
Dangote made the remarks following a visit by a Zambian government delegation, led by the country’s Minister of Energy, Makozo Chikote. He emphasized that the refinery’s impact extends beyond Nigeria.
“This refinery is not only for Nigeria; it is for Africa,” he said. “We must sustain the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) deal. We are looking at how to trade with other African countries.”
Chikote, who led a team of energy experts to explore partnerships with Dangote Refinery, praised the industrialist’s vision for Africa.
“Aliko Dangote is truly focused on the bigger picture for Africa,” Chikote said after touring the refinery complex in Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos.
Following a presentation by Edwin Devakumar, Vice President of Oil and Gas at Dangote Industries Limited, the Zambian minister described the refinery as a potential solution to his country’s energy challenges.
“In Zambia, we have created an environment for private sector participation in petroleum,” he said. “Currently, 100 percent of our petroleum sector is driven by private businesses. We are looking at Dangote coming on board to provide efficient, reliable, and competitive products—this needs to happen as soon as possible.”
He stressed the importance of intra-African trade, saying, “We need to promote trade within Africa to make the continent self-sufficient, rather than depending on overseas support.”
Also on the delegation was Samuel Maimbo, Vice President for Budget, Performance Review, and Strategic Planning at the World Bank Group, who is currently vying for the presidency of the African Development Bank (AfDB).
Maimbo noted that Africa lacks sufficient government funding and development aid to drive sustainable growth.
“The only way we can finance Africa’s development at the scale required is by working through the private sector,” he said. “That is why we are here—to learn from an ambitious project like this.”
According to Devakumar, the Dangote Refinery has been designed to maximize value addition and process various crude oil grades.
“The refinery can meet all of Nigeria’s requirements. Forty-four percent of our output is enough to cover domestic demand, while 56 percent will be exported,” he said.
He detailed the refinery’s daily production figures:
104 million litres of lighter products
57 million litres of petrol
20 million litres of jet fuel
27 million litres of diesel
“Nigeria’s local consumption is about 46 million litres daily, meaning we will export the remaining 58 million litres,” Devakumar added.
The Dangote Petroleum Refinery, located in the Lekki Free Trade Zone, is Africa’s largest refinery and the world’s biggest single-train refinery, with a processing capacity of 650,000 barrels per day.
