Dangote thanks Tinubu, Nigerians over refinery’s takeoff

President of the Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote has expressed appreciation to President Bola Tinubu for his vision and support which he said encouraged him to embark on the Dangote Refinery project some years back.

The refinery formally took off on Friday with the production of diesel and aviation fuel.

Speaking with stakeholders in the oil and gas industry on the historic start of domestic refining of petroleum products that will eliminate dependence on importation of refined products in the country, Dangote recalled the support, encouragement, and thoughtful advice he got from President Tinubu towards the actualisation of the refinery project.

“This production, as witnessed today, would not have been possible without his (Tinubu’s) visionary leadership and prompt attention to detail,” Dangote said.

He added: “His intervention at various stages cleared all impediments, thereby accelerating the actualisation of the project.”

The Group Head, Corporate Communications, Dangote Group ,Mr Anthony Chiejina quoted Dangote as saying the diesel and aviation fuel from the refinery would be available at the stands within the next two weeks.

Dangote said: “We have started the production of diesel and aviation fuel, and the products will be in the market before the end of the month.

“This is a big day for Nigeria. We are delighted to have reached this significant milestone.

“This is a game changer for our country, and I am very fulfilled with the actualisation of this project.

“The refinery has so far received six million barrels of crude oil at its two SPMs located 25 kilometres from the shore.

Dangote boss said that the refinery design complies with the World Bank, US EPA, European emission norms, and Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) emission/effluent norms. State-of-the-art technology.

He also acknowledged the support of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd., the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and Nigerians for their support and belief in the historic project.

“These organisations have been our dependable partners in this historic journey,” he said.The National President of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Alhaji Abubakar Maigandi, told The Nation by phone yesterday that members of the association could not wait to have the price list of all the products.

“We want to know Dangote petroleum products prices. We will request the list so that we can give it to our members,” Maigandi said.

He also said the association was pressing for allocation of the products to independent marketers from the refinery.