Dangote launches Africa’s biggest oil refinery

Nigeria now boasts the biggest oil refinery in Africa.

The new facility will be able to produce 650,000 barrels a day, giving it the potential to address the country’s energy supply crisis.

Owned by Nigerian industrialist and Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, the first product from the refinery is expected to hit the market by the end of July 2023. It is the first privately owned crude oil refinery in Nigeria.

The refinery is expected to boost domestic refining capacity, getting rid of the current consumption shortfall. It will also reduce import dependence and stimulate economic growth.

Nigeria’s existing refineries, according to The Conversation, are plagued by operational inefficiencies under government control.

The West African country currently imports more than 80 percent of its refined petroleum products, though the current facility has failed to meet the growing demand for petroleum products.

The country is the largest importer of refined petroleum products in Africa. Local production will therefore massively cut the country’s import bill.