News
May 31,2023
The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) has opined that the recently inaugurated Dangote Petrol Refinery may not fully meet the needs of Nigerians or lower the cost of petroleum goods in the nation.
NLC President, Joe Ajaero, said the Dangote Refinery is admirable but it might not be the solution to the problems facing the petroleum industry.
He spoke on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Wednesday, amid the uproar surrounding the plan to elimination of fuel subsidies.
Ajaero said, “First, I commend Dangote Refinery but the provision of having dictatorship of the market especially in the private sector is dangerous. Now that is what we are experiencing in the area of cement production. What is Dangote Refinery going to produce? Will it be enough?
“He has done enough to build a refinery. If three or four companies like that are refining then you are talking of competition.
“So, I think while we commend Dangote as a good Nigerian, we are talking about competition, we are talking of deregulation. So Dangote has done well, but can Dangote take care of 30% of the needs of Nigerians?”
Tinubu had during his inauguration said subsidy on petrol is “gone”, a move that has triggered fuel queues across cities in the nation.
While reacting to the announcement, NLC President Joe Ajaero described the development as not well planned, saying Nigerians feel betrayed by the move.
“By his insensitive decision, President Tinubu on his inauguration day brought tears and sorrow to millions of Nigerians instead of hope. He equally devalued the quality of their lives by over 300 per cent and counting,” he said in a statement issued on Tuesday.
Aliko Dangote, during the commissioning of the refinery, revealed that the first product of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals “will be in the market before the end of July, beginning of August this year”.
“Beyond today’s ceremony, our first goal is to ramp up production of the various products to ensure that within this year, we’re able to fully satisfy our nation’s demand for higher quality products,” he said.
President Muhammadu Buhari, who did not bring to reality his pledges of overhauling state-owned refineries in Port-Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna, will today commission Dangote Refinery as stakeholders count the gains of the facility.
Amidst uncertainties over Nigeria’s fuel subsidy, Dangote Refinery, a 650,000 barrels per day (bpd) facility expected to be the biggest single refinery in the world, will according to Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) add about $21 billion (N9.7 trillion at the current exchange rate) yearly to the Nigerian economy.
This is coming as some stakeholders yesterday said Nigeria’s 445,000 barrels per day refineries, despite being repaired, may become obsolete and difficult to sell going by the new Dangote Refinery.
Concerns are however mounting as stakeholders, who spoke in separate interviews asked Nigerians to get ready to buy products at a higher price as they insisted that while the new refinery broke the monopoly in the sector, pricing mechanism would have to change.
In promises detailed in the APC policy document and manifesto, Buhari’s 100 days covenant, speeches at campaign rallies and town hall meetings, Buhari before winning the 2015 election, pledged to remove fuel subsidy and fix the refineries, barely nine days to leave office the promises remained a mirage.
