Africa’s richest man and President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has questioned the viability of Nigeria’s state-owned refineries, expressing skepticism over their ability to function effectively despite swallowing a staggering $18 billion in rehabilitation costs.
Speaking on Thursday during a visit by members of the Global CEO Africa from the Lagos Business School to the Dangote Petroleum Refinery in Lekki, Lagos, Dangote said the Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna refineries, operated by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), may never return to meaningful productivity.
“I honestly don’t see how those refineries will work. They’ve consumed about $18 billion already and are still not functioning,” Dangote said pointedly during the tour.
Dangote also used the opportunity to highlight the sheer scale and ambition of his refinery project, which is designed not just for Nigeria’s consumption needs but also for export.
