Aliko Dangote, the Nigerian billionaire businessman, says
the Dangote Refinery will supply its first tranche of petroleum products to the
market before the end of July.
The business tycoon spoke on Monday at the inauguration of
the 650,000 barrels per day (BPD) integrated refinery project located in the
Lekki free trade zone area of Lagos state.
The project, which cost $19 billion, is said to be Africa’s
largest oil refinery and the world’s largest single-train facility.
The combined refinery and petrochemical complex will create
9,500 direct jobs and 25,000 indirect jobs.
Speaking at the landmark event, Dangote said the
commissioning ceremony is the beginning of a great journey, adding that it is a
milestone in a new and exciting trajectory for Nigeria’s oil and gas downstream
sector.
“It is our firm commitment that we will replicate in this
sector what we have actually achieved in the cement and fertilizer markets
while Nigeria transformed from being the largest importer of these crude
products to a net exporter,” he said.
“Our first goal is to ramp up projections of various
production to ensure that within this year, we are able to fully satisfy our
nation’s demand for higher quality products to enable us to eliminate the
tragedy of import dependency and stop, once and for all, the dumping in our
market of toxic substandard petroleum products.
“Our first products
will be in the market before the end of July, beginning of August this year.”
Speaking further, Dangote said the company will ensure that
its plants are run at the highest capacity utilisation and the highest
efficiency to enable the refinery to export competitively to other markets.
He added that the operationalisation of the refinery is a
clear opportunity for Nigeria given the African Union’s commitment to the
creation of an African common market through the recently established African
Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Furthermore, the Dangote Group founder said once the plant
is fully commissioned, it is expected that at least 40 percent of the capacity
will be available for export, adding that it will result in significant foreign
exchange into the country.
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