Dangote Clarifies Incentives and Monopoly Concerns at Refinery
Lagos, Nigeria – In a recent statement, Aliko Dangote, Chairman of Dangote Group, addressed concerns about incentives and monopoly at the newly established Dangote Refinery. Speaking on Thursday, Dangote emphasized that no incentives were collected from the Federal Government of Nigeria or Lagos State for the refinery project.
“In the refinery, we did not, and I repeat, we did not collect one single incentive from the Federal Government of Nigeria or even Lagos State,” Dangote asserted. “Yes, Lagos State gave us a good deal but we paid $100 million for the land. It wasn’t free land; we paid for it.”
Responding to comments made by NMDPRA Chief Executive Farouk Ahmed regarding potential monopoly in the petroleum sector, Dangote highlighted the long-standing issue of petrol queues in Nigeria. “This country has been having petrol queues since 1972. The fact that we are now ready to start, everybody is up and about. In terms of quality, we are doing very well, nobody can produce anything better than us,” he stated.
Dangote also provided updates on the production schedule for Premium Motor Spirit (PMS). “PMS was supposed to be out this July, but due to a fire incident, it disrupted us for a few days. By the latest, 10 or 12 August PMS will be ready,” he announced, assuring the public of the refinery’s commitment to meeting high-quality standards and addressing Nigeria’s fuel needs.
The Dangote Refinery, poised to become Africa’s largest oil refinery, has been a significant investment aimed at reducing Nigeria’s dependency on imported petroleum products and stabilizing the local supply.
