A FRESH round of hostilities may have erupted between major oil marketers and the Dangote petroleum refinery as both parties jostle for dominance in Nigeria’s downstream oil sector.
This follows recent revelations by the President of the Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, who declared that his $20bn refinery is still “fighting for survival” amid what he described as sabotage by entrenched interests and oil sector cabals resisting local refining.
He stated at a recent event that the battle with entrenched oil cabals — one that began even before the refinery commenced full operations — was still ongoing, but expressed confidence that he would ultimately prevail in securing the refinery’s future.
Findings revealed that the business mogul’s remarks were triggered by the continued importation of petrol and the reluctance of major marketers to buy in bulk from the refinery, despite its increased production capacity and improved output of petroleum products.
This comes against the backdrop that marketers of petroleum products utilising scarce foreign exchange brought in a total of 2.57 billion litres of Premium Motor Spirit, also known as petrol, in 70 days between March 1 and May 9, 2025.
This newspaper’s analysis using an April 2025 midstream and downstream document and latest tanker vessel movement obtained from Blue Sea Maritime, showed that the marketers, who opted not to patronise Dangote, imported 755.7 million litres of petrol in March at an average of 25.19 million daily.
In April alone, petrol imports surged to approximately 1.47 billion litres, indicating sustained reliance on foreign supply.
Within just the first 10 days of May, an additional 331.33 million litres were brought into the country, underscoring the continued high demand met through importation despite ramped-up local production.
With an average of N948 per litre, importers may have spent N2.42tn on PMS imports. This is in addition to N4.51tn spent on the same purpose between October 2024 and February 2025.
Dangote had, since last year, raised the alarm that some mafias were sabotaging his refinery.
He specifically mentioned that some international oil companies were sabotaging his investment by denying the facility adequate crude supply despite the domestic crude supply obligation.
Dangote had alleged that the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority was issuing licences to marketers to import substandard petroleum products into the country.
To fight this, the facility approached a federal high court to stop the regulatory authority from issuing import licences to marketers.
The court is yet to rule on the request.
At a point last year, Dangote said he regretted building the refinery, saying the mafias in the oil and gas sector were stronger than those of drugs.
“In a system where, for 35 years, people are used to counting good money, and all of a sudden, they see that the days of counting that money have come to an end, you don’t expect them to pray for you. Of course, you expect them to fight back.
“And I think that is the process that we’re now really going through. But the truth is that, yes, the country, the sub-region, and also the continent of sub-Saharan Africa, need this refinery. So, you expect them to fight through non-supply of crude, non-purchase of the product, but I think it’s all temporary. We’ll get there,” Dangote stated.
But giving an update at an investor forum in Lagos last week, Dangote said the fight for the survival of his $20bn refinery was still on.
He pointed out that some individuals who “for a very, very long time” have “made a lot of money from” government-subsidised oil imports into Nigeria, were the ones trying to sabotage the 650,000 barrels per day oil refinery situated in Lekki, Lagos.
“We are fighting, and the fight is not yet finished. But I have been fighting all my life, and I am ready and 100 per cent sure I will win at the end of the day,” he stated.