Dangote’s 500,000 barrels per day capacity refinery would start operations in Nigeria by 2017, the firm confirmed on Tuesday.
The new refinery, which is worth $9bn, is to be situated in the Lagos area.
The spokesperson for the Dangote Group, Mr. Tony Chiejina, who confirmed this said the refinery “should be able to come on stream between 2017 and 2018.”
Asked if the company was encountering some constraints in its quest to realise the feat, Chiejina said all the apparatus and personnel were on track to beat the said timeline.
Meanwhile, a senior official of the Dangote Group also confirmed the 2017 timeline to Reuters at an African refiners’ conference in Cape Town on Tuesday.
The refinery is expected to cut reliance on international markets for Nigeria, which is Africa’s largest oil producer, but imports more than 80 percent of its fuel needs.
The lack of sufficient refining capacity has been a major challenge for the Nigerian economy.
“By the third quarter of 2017, we expect to be looking at the inauguration,” Dangote Industries Limited’s Executive Director of Stakeholder Management and Corporate Communications, Mr. Mansur Ahmed, told Reuters.
The refinery is being designed to process Nigerian crude mix and produce products conforming to Euro V fuel specifications, as fuel demands across the continent are forecast to rise rapidly with many countries enjoying strong economic growth.
Poor infrastructure, competitive global markets and financial constraints have traditionally held back Africa’s refining capacity, while fuel subsidies in Nigeria are also an issue, said Ahmed, who spoke on behalf of the President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote.
Ahmed said the refinery, which is being funded by debt and equity, including a $3bn commitment from Dangote himself, could list in future should additional capital be needed.
“We have listed our cement business; we have listed our sugar business and our salt business and, if you like, history is the best teacher.”
The Dangote Group has interests ranging from cement to basic food processing to oil and gas.
A boost to its refining capacity would be a blow to European refiners and oil traders, which make huge profits bringing gasoline into the country.
