The President and Chief Executive of Dangote Group Aliko Dangote has addressed Nigeria’s ongoing fuel queue challenges.
Speaking during a recent interview with State House reporters in Abuja, he urged the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and local marketers to cease fuel imports, presenting his refinery as a viable solution to the crisis.
Dangote estimated the country’s daily fuel consumption at around 30-32 million liters, stating that his facility is ready to begin production as soon as next week. He revealed that his tanks currently hold 500 million liters of fuel, enough to sustain the nation for over 12 days without any imports.
“We are more than ready,” Dangote asserted, expressing confidence in his ability to supply the market with 30 million liters per day. He called on the NNPCL and fuel marketers to come and collect what they need, emphasizing that maintaining such large reserves incurs significant costs. “Every day, I am losing money on this,” he noted, referring to the 32 percent interest he could be earning if the fuel were sold.
This statement follows the recent Nigerian Government decision to sell crude oil to the Dangote Refinery in naira, a policy aimed at stabilizing domestic fuel prices and reducing the dependence on the dollar for oil transactions.
