On Tuesday, Aliko Dangote, Chairman of Dangote Group, encouraged petroleum marketers, including the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), to procure petrol directly from his refinery to meet domestic demand.
After a private meeting with President Bola Tinubu at the Aso Rock Villa in Abuja, Dangote affirmed that his refinery is prepared to supply fuel. He noted that at full capacity, the facility can produce over 30 million liters of fuel daily and currently holds a reserve of 500 million liters, enough to meet the country’s fuel needs for more than 12 days without imports.
“We’re more than ready,” Dangote assured reporters at the State House, emphasizing that his refinery’s output could substantially reduce Nigeria’s reliance on imported fuel. Addressing the issue of fuel scarcity in some regions, he explained, “On the streets, you have to understand that we are producers.
I have a refinery but am not involved in retail. If I were in the retail business, then I’d be responsible. But what I’m saying is the retailers should come forward and pick up the fuel. If they don’t, what else can I do?”
Dangote further urged either the NNPC or other marketers to prioritize sourcing fuel locally instead of importing, given the refinery’s capacity to meet demand. “As they come to collect, I’ll continue to pump. It’s expensive to keep such a large reserve – holding a billion liters incurs daily costs. If I could get naira for it, I could charge 32% interest to others. Right now, that’s my loss.”
He concluded, “With 500 million liters available, we don’t print money. But if they come and collect, queues at filling stations would disappear.”
More updates soon…
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