By Dangote Petroleum Refinery Plc has assured Nigerian consumers of an end to Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) or petrol scarcity, saying that the country has entered a new phase of abundance.
The assurance was given by the newly appointed Managing Director of the Refinery, David Bird, at a press briefing in Lagos on Wednesday, following the seamless supplies by the facility during the last Christmas and New Year celebrations.
Bird described the development as a significant achievement.
Beyond availability, he said that Nigeria is now consuming world-quality fuels, produced to Euro 5 standards, because the refinery also exports gasoline to Europe and jet fuel to markets such as Dubai.
He criticised the historical dumping of inferior fuel products in West Africa and said Dangote Refinery’s output represents a major public health improvement, not just in volume but in quality, with lower sulphur and cleaner fuels.
“We have been able to achieve 1000 trucks daily and 500million liters a day”, he noted, adding that the stable and lower fuel prices are contributing to economic stability, including support for the naira.
According to him, the company’s decision to further invest in refining capacity and expand polypropylene production to 2.4 million tonnes would strengthen domestic manufacturing and create a large industrial ecosystem.
The company would not dwell on the controversial reorganisation in October, but on capacity building and expansion, Bird noted.
“Dangote’s vision for the expansion is all about enforcing lower costs that can expand to areas that are population-led”, he said.
The new MD debunked claims by industry players that the N739 petrol price was “anti-competitive”.
“The retail price is fully competitive. The consumer has a choice to choose whichever, and I’d like to see a change in how regulator works for the market”, he noted.
While addressing the media, Head of Communications for the Dangote Group, Anthony Chiejina, noted that the ongoing crisis in Venezuela benefits the country.
“We are a producing country”, he said as Bird noted that domestic refining is critical to insulating Nigeria from global oil price volatility.
He explained that reliance on imports exposes the country to fluctuations in crude and product prices.
According to him, local production brings stability to the Nigerian fuel market and reduces exposure to international shocks.
“Nigeria is now enjoying world-class fuel. We have the capacity, and we must make sure our production matches the European quality.
“This is a continental project. This is not just a crude processing plant, and our objective is to drive price stability within a range of the international benchmark market…
On the refinery expansion, he explained that the idea is a “ruthless replication”, and that the Refinery will be able to build this place in three years.
“We’d be placing all of our long-term procurement”, he said, adding that the Refinery is currently in a stabilisation phase.
“Despite ramping up some units in the second half of 2025, it consistently supplied over 50 million litres of finished fuel daily, sometimes exceeding 52 million litres”.
According to him, this performance was possible because “Dangote Refinery is not a conventional single-crude refinery, but a highly flexible merchant refining, blending and trading platform”, he said.
Bird said steel structures are expected to start rising before the end of 2026.
Addressing production and evacuation, Bird said the refinery has achieved off-take of over 50 million litres per day, matching production levels.
“Off-take fluctuates depending on demand, but the refinery can export excess volumes if necessary.”
Asked on fuel distribution and free trucking, Bird said about 4,000 trucks are currently on site and that the final step before full rollout is the implementation of a computerised security system, to ensure customers receive the exact volumes they purchase.
On petrochemicals, Bird said polypropylene production is central to the refinery’s strategy.
The new MD noted that the existing polypropylene plant has a capacity of 800,000 tonnes, and that an additional PDH unit will raise output to 1.2 million tonnes, with the expansion ultimately lifting capacity to 2.4 million tonnes.
He added that future diversification could include detergents, base oils, lubricants, and Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), driven by import substitution and population demand.
Asked on the crude-for-naira programme, Bird said between 30 and 40 per cent of the refinery’s crude supply currently comes from the scheme.
He added that the Refinery continues to engage with Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited and the government, to improve crude allocations and volumes, adding that the programme has contributed significantly to stabilising the naira and could be expanded in Nigeria’s long-term interest.
