THE Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited will begin supplying 300,000 barrels of crude oil per day to the plant, NNPCL Group Chief Executive Officer Mele Kyari announced yesterday as the Dangote Refinery resumes operations next week.
Kyari made the announcement at the 4th Nigerian Oil and Gas Opportunity Fair, which is currently taking place in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State. He also asked all stakeholders to join the national oil firm in increasing crude oil and gas output in Nigeria.
He stated that the NNPCL, which owned a 20% ownership in the refinery, was prepared to meet its crude supply responsibilities to the facility, emphasizing that with the refinery coming up next week, the national oil company will be ready.
He was quoted in a statement as saying, “We want to address the energy challenges so that industrialisation can come to the country. 48 per cent of all revenue that comes to the government comes from the oil and gas sector and we are in a very good position to support the growth of the economy.”
Reports earlier this month revealed that the Dangote Refinery, established by Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, is set to open on May 22.
Bashir Ahmad, a presidential aide, tweeted that the President Buhari, would perform the inauguration.
“Efforts by the Federal Government to make Nigeria self-sufficient in local refining of crude oil to save the scarce foreign exchange used in the importation of petroleum products have received a boost as the 650,000 barrels per day Dangote Refinery, the world’s largest single-train refinery, is set for inauguration on May 22nd, 2023, by President Muhammadu Buhari,” Ahmad announced.
The 650,000bpd facility is under development in the Lekki Free Zone of Lagos, Nigeria, and is projected to be worth more than $19 billion. It will be Africa’s largest oil refinery and the world’s largest single-train operation.
According to the company’s website, the refinery would meet 100% of Nigeria’s refined product requirements and will have a surplus of each of these products for export.
“Dangote Petroleum Refinery is a multi-billion dollar project that will create a market for $21bn per annum of Nigerian crude. It is designed to process Nigerian crude with the ability to also process other crude,” the firm stated.
The announcement of the planned inauguration of the facility on May 22 had also elicited excitement and expectations among Nigerians, industry operators, government officials and other stakeholders.
“We are optimistic and excited to know that the refinery is set for the inauguration, considering the humongous benefits that it is going to have on not just the oil sector, but on the Nigerian economy,” the National Public Relations Officer, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Chief Ukadike Chinedu, had stated.
“With the coming on board of the Dangote Refinery, we believe that Nigeria will say goodbye to PMS scarcity, as well as the poor supply of other petroleum products,” Ukadike stated.
