President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote has fingered powerful oil marketers and traders as opponents of his multi-billion-dollar refinery and not the leadership of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, as often speculated.
Dangote made the disclosure while addressing concerns about ongoing challenges facing the refinery, which is seen as a transformative project for Nigeria’s energy sector.
He disclosed that entrenched interests within the marketing and trading ecosystem are still working to undermine the refinery’s survival, largely because its successful operation threatens their long-standing control over fuel importation and pricing.
“The people fighting the survival of the refinery are mainly major marketers and traders—not the new leadership at NNPC,” Dangote said.
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He emphasized that the new NNPC management has shown signs of cooperation and alignment with national goals, while resistance from private-sector actors has manifested through lobbying, misinformation, and delay tactics intended to slow the refinery’s impact on the local fuel market.
The Dangote Refinery, with a capacity of 650,000 barrels per day, is expected to drastically cut Nigeria’s dependence on fuel imports and reduce the country’s foreign exchange burden—posing a threat to the profits of fuel importers.
Dangote assured the public that despite these challenges, the refinery remains on course and will deliver on its promise to help secure Nigeria’s energy future.
Crediblenewsng.com
