Dangote Refinery Dismisses Shutdown Claims

The Dangote Petroleum Refinery has denied shutting down its petrol processing unit, saying it pumped 43.3 million litres of petrol into the market on Saturday.

Officials of the refinery told The PUNCH that this figure is 50% more than Nigeria’s daily consumption, debunking claims of a shutdown.

The refinery has enough fuel to last 20 days and urges Nigerians to patronise filling stations selling Dangote products.

Some depots have raised petrol prices to N800/litre, citing the refinery’s shutdown, but officials call this a false claim aimed at increasing prices.

The refinery sells petrol at N699/litre, a price it reduced from N828 in December.

Depot operators had previously raised prices, but the refinery’s move has forced some stations to lower prices, selling below their cost of purchase.

Aliko Dangote, President of the Dangote Group, vows to enforce the new price regime, saying he’d rather lose money than allow petrol imports to thrive.

The development has caused concern among petrol importers, who might lose up to N102.48bn monthly due to the refinery’s price cut.