Aliko Dangote has announced that petrol produced at his 650,000 barrels per day facility will be available at filling stations within the next 48 hours as final arrangements with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) are completed.
He made this statement on Tuesday during a press briefing marking the formal production of petrol at the refinery.
“Our PMS (Premium Motor Spirit) can be in filling stations within the next 48 hours, depending on NNPCL,” Dangote stated.
When asked about the pricing of petrol from his refinery, Dangote said, “The pricing arrangement is designed and approved by the Federal Executive Council, led by His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Once finalized—which could be today or tomorrow—we are ready to roll into the market.”
Last December, Dangote, Africa’s leading industrialist, began operations at his $20 billion facility located in Lagos, initially processing 350,000 barrels per day.
The refinery, which initially faced regulatory challenges, aims to reach its full capacity of 650,000 barrels per day by the end of the year. The facility has already started supplying diesel and aviation fuel to marketers in the country, and now, petrol is also set to be distributed.
Dangote also highlighted that the introduction of a naira-for-crude arrangement will reduce the demand for foreign exchange by 40 percent.
“I want to thank President Bola Tinubu for initiating the idea of Naira for crude and Naira for the product. This will bring stability to the Naira and reduce the demand for dollars by 40 percent. Additionally, it will help address issues of round-tripping,” he noted.
He added that the new system would also enable the tracking of loaded trucks, making it easier to compute national consumption.
