The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) says the production of petroleum products by the Dangote Petroleum Refinery has reduced the importation of refined petroleum products from the European market.
In its Monthly Oil Market Report published on January 15, 2025, the global body said with the refining efforts of the Lagos-based refinery, gasoline volumes produced in the international markets would have to find new destination markets.
“The ongoing operational ramp-up efforts at Nigeria’s new Dangote refinery and its gasoline exports to the international market will likely weigh further on the European gasoline market.
“Continued gasoline production in Nigeria, a country that has relied heavily on imports to meet its domestic fuel needs in the past, will most likely continue to free up gasoline volumes in international markets which will call for new destinations and flow adjustments for the extra volumes going forward,” the report partly read.
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, faces energy challenges, with all its state-owned refineries non-operational for decades until recently. The country is heavily reliant on imported refined petroleum products, with the state-run NNPCL being the major importer of the essential commodities.
Fuel queues are commonplace in the country. Prices of petrol have risen fivefold since the removal of subsidy in May 2023 by President Bola Tinubu, from around N200/litre to around N1000/litre, compounding the woes of the citizens who power their vehicles, and generating sets with petrol, no thanks to decades-long epileptic electricity supply.
In December 2023, Aliko Dangote, Africa’s leading industrialist, commenced operations at his $20bn facility sited in Lagos with 350,000 barrels a day.
The Dangote refinery, which was initially bogged by regulatory battles, hopes to achieve its full capacity of 650,000 barrels per day by the end of the year.
The Dangote refinery has begun the supply of diesel, petrol and aviation fuel to marketers in the country.
