By Abiola Olawale
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has unveiled damning revelations about the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals Company owned by Africa’s richest man and business mogul, Alhaji Aliko Dangote.
The Authority Chief executive of NMDPRA, Mr Farouk Ahmed who spoke with the press, said that Dangote Refinery has not been issued any license by the commission to operate because the refinery is still not fit for operations.
Ahmed said that the narrative that the Dangote Refinery is ready for operation is false as the company is just about 45 per cent completed.
Speaking on the operations of the company, the NMDPRA Boss said the government cannot rely heavily on one refinery to feed the nation.
According to him, Dangote Refinery is requesting that the regulators suspend or stop all importation of petroleum products, especially AGO and Jet Kero, and direct all marketers to the refinery.
This, he added, is not good for the nation in terms of energy security, noting that it would also make Dangote a monopoly.
He said: “Well, just like you rightly asked, there are a lot of concerns about the supply of petroleum products nationwide and the claims by some media houses that were trying to scuttle Dangote Refinery that is not so.
“Dangote Refinery is still in the pre-commissioning stage. It has not been licensed yet. We haven’t licensed it yet. They are still in the pre-com56missioning stage. I think they are about 45 per cent in completion rather.
“So, we cannot rely heavily on one refinery to feed the nation because the company is requesting that we suspend or stop all importation of petroleum products, especially AGO and Jet Kero, and direct all marketers to the refinery.
“That is not good for the nation in terms of energy security, and that is not good for our markets in terms of monopoly. So, in terms of quality, currently, the AGO quality in terms of sulfur is the lowest as far as a West African requirement of 50 ppm.
“Dangote Refinery, as well as some major refineries, like Walter Smith’s refinery, other refineries, they produce 650 to 1,200 ppm. So, in terms of quality, their quality is much, much inferior to the imported commodities.”
The New Diplomat reports that this comes after the Vice President of Oil and Gas at Dangote Industries Limited, Devakumar Edwin had accused International Oil Companies of refusing to sell crude oil to Dangote refinery, adding that the company buys crude from IOCs at $6 above the market price.
Edwin had said: “It seems that the IOCs’ objective is to ensure that our petroleum refinery fails. It is either they are deliberately asking for a ridiculous/humongous premium or they simply state that crude is not available.”
