'5 days to go' - Dangote speaks on refinery production date, discloses first target

Aliko Dangote, Chairman of the Dangote Group, has confirmed that his 650,000-capacity refinery is ready to pump the first refined petroleum products this December.

The billionaire revealed that the first target is to produce 350,000 barrels of refined petroleum products daily from the facility.

Dangote revealed this in an interview with the Financial Times on Saturday, November 25, 2023.

He said the refinery, which has missed two production deadlines, will begin with 350,000 barrels daily, stating that a deal had already been reached for the first cargo of about six million barrels of crude oil delivery in December 2023.

Dangote said:

"We are starting with 350,000 barrels a day. I don't know whether other people can face our challenges and even survive. It is either we sink or we sail through. And we thank the Almighty that we have arrived at the destination."

Dangote had disclosed to investors in Saudi Arabia during a trip to the country with President Bola Tinubu that the refinery wants to begin production with crude supply from the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC).

There have been reports that the refinery ordered six million barrels of crude oil from the NNPC, totaling 200,000 barrels daily.

Dangote told the Financial Times that he believes strongly in the facility's capacity to reach 650,000 barrels per day by the end of 2024.

Africa's richest man said the refinery has successfully resolved all the challenges concerning crude oil supply, stating that it will eventually list on the Lagos Stock Exchange.

He dismissed the notion that the NNPC was pushing for a more significant stake in the refinery.

Dangote stated that once operational, the facility will generate an annual revenue of $25 billion, noting that NPPC is content with the 20% stake in the refinery.

The International Energy Agency said in its Outlook for October 2023 that the Dangote refinery is expected to play an essential role in driving oil demand growth, especially for countries in Africa that rely on petrol imports.