LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)-Dangote refinery has announced that its plan to release premium motor spirit (PMS) into the market this month has been postponed.
During a tour of the refinery with Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Dangote Group President Aliko Dangote informed journalists that petrol from the 650,000 barrels-per-day refinery would now be available in July.
Dangote cited minor challenges for the delay, specifying that the product would be ready between July 10 and 15.
“We had a bit of delay, but PMS will start coming out by 10 to 15 of July. But then we want to keep it in the tank to make sure that it settles. So by the third week of July, we’ll be able to come out to take it into the market,” Dangote had said.
Reactions to this announcement varied. Some Nigerians speculated on the reasons for the repeated postponements.
A Facebook user, Anthony Ihenyen, said it was not easy to have such a huge investment.
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“You are trying, sir, and it will fly. We need more people like you to do more here in Nigeria, not abroad. Nobody is a saint.
On his part, Emmanuel Ose expressed concern, saying “Anything that will make an average Nigerian happy is always a problem to get in Nigeria”.
Another commenter, Adeola Orukotan, said, “When you know your refinery isn’t ready, why rush to declare it open? Now it’s over one year with story upon story.”
An X user, @ajagunsegun, stated, “Nigerians were told that the Dangote refinery was due for operation when it was commissioned by Buhari in May 2023, but up until now, we’re still waiting. Well, Dangote has the right to run his private business however he wishes. But what about the four Nigerian refineries? When President Tinubu came into power, he promised that the Port Harcourt refinery would begin operation by December last year, this is June 2024, and we’re still waiting. Sincerely, there’s no way you’ll reside in Nigeria without developing the tendency to lie. There are too many lies and government propaganda everywhere.
But Michael Chibuzo remarked that a refinery is not a “barbecue business.”
“It is complex. You have to pass a lot of tests and carry out many test runs. Commercial production is always the last stage of the entire process. Let’s be patient,” Chibuzo advised.
@Selomsarl stated, “Thank you for the update, Mr. Dangote. We appreciate your commitment to ensuring the quality of the petrol before releasing it into the market. Your dedication to producing high-quality products is commendable. Questions, sir: How will the new refinery’s production affect the current fuel scarcity in the country? Will the petrol produced by the refinery be subsidised, or will it be sold at the current market price? How will the distribution of the petrol be handled to ensure it reaches all states and regions equally?”
In all of these, a netizen, Stanley Omoyemi, submitted, “We are waiting patiently.”
VONa previously reported in May that the Dangote Refinery aimed to put an end to fuel importation by June and begin selling premium motor spirit (PMS) within the same month.
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This announcement was made by Aliko Dangote at the Africa CEO Forum Annual Summit in Kigali, Rwanda, where he expressed confidence that his refinery would eliminate the need for petrol imports in Nigeria.
“Right now, Nigeria has no cause to import anything apart from gasoline and by sometime in June, within the next four or five weeks, Nigeria shouldn’t import anything like gasoline; not one drop of a litre,” he declared
“We have enough gasoline to give to at least the entire West Africa, diesel to give to West Africa and Central Africa. We have enough aviation fuel to give to the entire continent and also export some to Brazil and Mexico.
“We have started producing jet fuel, we are producing diesel, and by next month, we’ll be producing gasoline. What that will do, it will be able to take most African crude,” Dangote told the panel.
The announcement had initially offered hope to marketers and Nigerians, who expected the Dangote refinery to reduce petrol prices.