KEY POINTS
- A March report indicated that Nigeria’s fuel demand would be met by Dangote refinery with 30M daily litres.
- National demand can be covered up to 12+ days by retained reserves of 500 million liters, ready for drinking.
- He urged NNPC and marketers to reduce imports and buy locally to stop scarcity.
Nigeria’s Aliko Dangote, Chairman of the Dangote Group, called on the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) and petroleum marketers to stop sourcing foreign fuel for Nigeria, and instead secure it from his refinery.
Dangote’s refinery will meet the local needs
At Aso Rock Villa, Dangote told reporters he had held talks with President Bola Tinubu, and had announced that the refinery, which can produce 30 million liters daily, currently has 500 million litres in reserve — enough to supply the country for over 12 days without having to import.
Dangote, tackling the recent fuel scarcity, said his refinery is set to meet local needs, calling on retailers to buy from his facility.
According to him, “I’m not in the retail business, but we have what they need and this would break the queue for fuel, it will reduce the dependence on expensive imports”.
As a solution to fuel shortages, we propose local refinery capacity
Large reserves are expensive to maintain, and Dangote said timely purchases by NNPC and also marketers would help reduce financial strain and keep supply in order.
According to The Punch, he said with more than 500 million liters stored there is no reason any stakeholder should not make use of the refining capacity of the refinery if it can help to reduce significantly Nigeria’s fuel needs.