Africaâs wealthiest individual and Chairman of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has announced that Nigeria will no longer need to import gasoline starting next month, following the strategic plans of the Dangote Refinery.
Dangote also mentioned that his refinery is capable of meeting the petrol and diesel demands of West Africa, as well as the aviation fuel needs of the entire continent. Speaking at the Africa CEO Forum Annual Summit in Kigali on Friday, he expressed optimism about revolutionizing Africaâs energy landscape.
âCurrently, Nigeria only imports gasoline, and within the next four to five weeks, we shouldnât import any gasoline; not even a single drop,â he declared.
He highlighted the oil companyâs progress in making Africa self-sufficient in the energy sector. He stated, âWe have sufficient gasoline for all of West Africa, diesel for West and Central Africa, and enough aviation fuel for the entire continent, with surplus for export to Brazil and Mexico.”
âOur polypropylene and polyethylene will meet Africa’s entire demand, and we are producing base oil, essential for engine oil, and linear alkylbenzene, a raw material for detergents. With Africa’s 1.4 billion population, no one else is producing these materials here.”
âAs I mentioned, within three to four years, Africa will no longer import fertilizer. We will achieve self-sufficiency in potash, phosphate, and urea. We are currently at three million tonnes of urea and will reach six million tonnes within twenty months, matching Egypt’s capacity. We are on track.”
Dangote also detailed the companyâs accomplishments since the refineryâs commissioning in February. “We invested heavily in Africa, rather than participating in the US capital market boom. Just five years ago, we aimed to increase our revenue from five billion dollars to thirty billion, and we succeeded.”
âOur refinery is essential for Africa. Besides Algeria and Libya, all other African countries import petroleum products, which is unacceptable. We must shift from exporting raw materials to producing finished products and creating jobs.”
âAfricans need to understand that exporting raw materials and importing goods only exports jobs and imports poverty. We must change this narrative.”
âWe commissioned the refinery in February and are now producing jet fuel and diesel. By next month, we will produce gasoline. This will allow us to utilize African crude.