By Ayomide Otitoju
Aliko Dangote, President/CEO of Dangote Industries Limited, has warned that Africa is becoming a dumping ground for substandard, often toxic petroleum products, as the continent continues to rely heavily on fuel imports due to insufficient refining capacity.
Speaking at the West African Refined Fuel Conference in Abuja, Dangote revealed that his refinery imports 9–10 million barrels of crude oil monthly from the United States and other countries, despite Nigeria producing over 2 million barrels daily.
“Africa imports over 120 million tonnes of refined products yearly, costing $90 billion. We are exporting jobs and importing poverty,” Dangote said, lamenting that just 40% of the continent’s demand is refined locally.
He noted that the Dangote Refinery, despite its capacity, has struggled to secure crude at competitive terms from local producers, often resorting to international traders who resell Nigerian crude at premium prices.
Dangote also criticized regulatory and logistical inefficiencies, stating that port and regulatory charges in Nigeria are among the highest globally, inflating freight costs and hampering local refiners.
He pointed to inconsistencies in fuel quality standards across African countries as a barrier to intra-continental trade. “The diesel we make for Nigeria can’t be sold in Ghana or Cameroon due to differing specifications. It fragments the market,” he said.
Calling for regional policy harmonization, Dangote urged African governments to adopt protective measures similar to those in the EU and North America to shield domestic refiners from unfair competition and harmful fuel imports.
He also detailed the scale of the refinery’s construction, including the clearing of 2,735 hectares of swampy land, deployment of 67,000 workers, and the building of a dedicated port and granite quarry.
Despite these efforts, Dangote warned that exchange rate instability and regulatory bottlenecks remain major obstacles, but reaffirmed his commitment to transforming Africa’s energy landscape.
