PETROL PRODUCTION AT DANGOTE REFINERY AFFECTING EUROPEAN MARKET — OPEC

The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries  said that the Dangote refinery’s production of petrol may affect European refining 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 NNPC 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 per litre to around N1000 per litre, compounding the problems 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 $20billion facility sited in Lagos with 350,000 barrels a day.

 The refinery, which was initially hindered by regulatory battles, hopes to achieve its full capacity of 650,000 barrels per day by the end of the year.

 The refinery has begun the supply of diesel, petrol and aviation fuel to marketers in the country.