In an interview with ARISE News on Monday, Dr. Godswill Ihetu, former Group Executive Director of NNPC Limited and former Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria LNG Limited, shared insights on the potential impact of the Dangote Refinery on Nigeria’s economy.
Dr. Ihetu explained the current status of the refinery, stating, “We’ve been told that out of that 650,000 barrels, we’ll be starting with 350,000, and what we have seen in the media shows that, in fact, the products out of that mean they will start commissioning. That’s the process they are going through now.
“We haven’t seen any indication of the first product out there in the market because commissioning will take some time.”
He elaborated on the commissioning process, noting, “Commission refers to introducing the crude oil into the system, which includes flushing the system before you start introducing the crude oil into the units that the system has been cleaned from the construction phase.”
Regarding the refinery’s potential impact, Dr. Ihetu stated, “I think it’s a major milestone. This is something we’ve been expecting for quite some time. Availability of PMS definitely, when all the units are activated, there will be enough PMS in the country to supply the entire country and a surplus for exports as well.”
On the initial products, he mentioned, “What we are hearing is that the initial products will be diesel, LPG, and aviation fuels. No mention of PMS anytime soon, but they said it will come later, and I think that’s an indication of which units they are going to activate.”
Discussing the significance of manufacturing these products locally, Dr. Ihetu highlighted, “It’s a major impact. The pricing thing is a little bit dodgy for me; I’m not quite sure. Firstly, at what price will Dangote be buying crude oil from Nigeria? I’m guessing international prices because you’ve seen how they’ve gone to buy crude from NNPC.”
Addressing concerns about the environmental impact, he expressed, “The issue of trucks is there are like 3000 trucks, and each of those trucks takes 30,000 litres. That’s just an estimate as the trucks will probably be carrying other products as well, but the point you make about the impact on the environment is a huge one. Trucks are too many for that system.”
Dr. Ihetu emphasised the need for a robust infrastructure to handle the products and reduce the reliance on trucks, stating, “If we had that capacity to take from Atlas Cove, we would’ve been able to reduce the trucks on the road.”
Kiki Garba
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