*Explains why he rejected fresh bid for more shares by NNPCL
The President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has disclosed that the company rejected attempts by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to acquire additional shares in the Dangote Petroleum Refinery Limited (DPRL), explaining that he preferred that more Nigerians should have the opportunity to own part of the facility through a planned public listing.
Speaking during an interview with Nicolai Tangen, Dangote said the refinery’s management deliberately declined the NNPCL offer because it intends to “spread its share holding and have everybody to be part of it.”
The international business mogul disclosed that although the original agreement allowed the NNPC to hold 20 per cent equity in his refinery, the state oil company only completed payment for 7.25 per cent before the deadline expired in June 2024.
“The agreement was actually for 20 per cent, which we had with NNPC, but they did not pay the balance of the money up until last year; then we gave them another extension up until June (2024), and they said that they would remain where they had already paid, which is 7.2 per cent.
“So NNPC owns only 7.2 per cent, not 20 per cent of the stakes in Dangote Petroleum,” he said.
Dangote identified policy inconsistency and the threat of conflict as major risks confronting the refinery project, noting that unstable government decisions remain a serious concern for long-term investments in Nigeria.
Dangote also revealed that the refinery has surpassed its installed capacity by processing 661,000 barrels of crude oil per day, above its official 650,000 barrels-per-day nameplate output, a feat he attributed to management and staff dedication and home-grown efforts.
According to him, the refinery currently sources about 56 per cent of its crude supply from Nigeria, while additional crude are imported from Angola, Libya and the United States of America to sustain operations.
The foremost industrialist also disclosed that rising global tensions in the Middle-East have unexpectedly boosted demand for the group’s products, with fertiliser prices jumping from $400 to $850 per tonne, and polypropylene rising sharply in international markets.
“The effect of the war on our businesses is more beneficial than a downside because today, fertiliser is in very high demand,” Dangote said, pointing out that aviation fuel produced by the refinery has already been sold out until mid-July.
He also alleged that a powerful “Mafia” benefiting from Nigeria’s former fuel subsidy regime had tried to frustrate the refinery project, while announcing plans to attract new investors and expand operations with a target of generating $100 billion in revenue by 2030.
