The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) has hailed the Dangote Petroleum Refinery as a transformative nationwide asset, calling it a significant step in bridging Nigeria’s gasoline provide hole, boosting employment, and restoring public confidence within the nation’s industrial capability.
Speaking throughout a tour of the refinery and Dangote Fertiliser Limited, the Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Lagos State Council, Comrade Funmi Sessi, who led the Executive members of the Council praised the huge scale and strategic significance of the Dangote Group’s investments, stating that the tasks are delivering tangible advantages to the Nigerian folks.
“Today, we have seen the massive Dangote Refinery project, as well as the fertiliser plant. We have also observed some of Dangote’s other investments in this axis. It is truly enormous and highly impressive,” mentioned the NLC chairperson. “I believe what we have seen is a clear effort to bridge the gap in the availability of essential products in the country and to create job opportunities for Nigerians and others as well as industrialise the country.”
The union acknowledged that following the Federal Government’s removing of petrol subsidies, Nigerians skilled an unprecedented surge in the price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS). However, the doorway of Dangote Petroleum Refinery into the market helped to stabilise costs.
“It wasn’t until Dangote came into the picture that we started seeing some relief. His intervention significantly crashed the escalated prices of PMS and other refined products. That’s a clear demonstration of private sector leadership,” she acknowledged.
The NLC made a direct attraction to the FG to prioritise the sale of crude oil to the Dangote Refinery in naira. The union argued that forcing the corporate to import crude or buy domestically in {dollars} undermines the promise of decrease gasoline costs for atypical Nigerians.
“This country has crude oil in abundance. So why is Dangote still being made to import crude or pay for it in hard currency?” the NLC queried. “If the government is truly committed to reducing fuel prices and supporting local refining, it must sell crude oil to Dangote in naira.”
The union burdened that sourcing crude domestically in native forex would considerably decrease operational prices and, by extension, result in a extra sustainable discount in gasoline costs.
“With a daily capacity of 650,000 barrels, this refinery can serve Nigeria and even the West African sub-region. We also seen big ships taking fertilisers to other countries. The government must maximise”
The NLC lauded Alhaji Aliko Dangote for reaching a completely purposeful, world-class refinery able to assembly each home and regional calls for for refined petroleum merchandise.
“When government-owned refineries failed, one man stepped up. Aliko Dangote didn’t just make promises; he fulfilled them. He has proven that Nigeria can not only refine its own products but also meet international quality standards,” she added.
The union additionally hailed the refinery’s manufacturing of Euro 5-compliant gasoline, which options considerably diminished sulphur content material, aligning with worldwide environmental requirements and boosting Nigeria’s credibility within the world petroleum market.
“This is the kind of pride we want to see — a Nigerian company producing at global standards. It is changing the narrative and elevating Nigeria’s position globally. It’s time the government supports and maximises the capacity of this asset”
In addition to gasoline, the NLC famous the group’s fertiliser firm, which is already exporting to worldwide markets. It urged the federal government to leverage these capabilities to boost meals safety and scale back dependence on imported agricultural inputs.
Vice President, Oil and Gas, Dangote Industries Limited, Mr Devakumar Edwin, mentioned the deliberate deployment of 4,000 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG)-powered vans to help the distribution of refined petroleum merchandise throughout Nigeria is aimed toward guaranteeing that the advantages of home refining and the ensuing discount in gasoline costs are absolutely handed on to Nigerian shoppers.
Mr Edwin acknowledged that the introduction of the CNG-powered fleet is a strategic step to scale back logistics prices in gasoline distribution — a significant factor within the closing pump value.
“The deployment of these 4,000 CNG-powered trucks will help us pass down the benefits of domestic refining and the reduction in product prices to consumers,” Edwin mentioned. “The aim is to support logistics and make distribution more efficient, not to displace any existing players in the sector.”
He additional defined that the usage of CNG-powered vans, along with being extra environmentally pleasant, will considerably scale back transportation bills, finally making refined merchandise extra inexpensive for Nigerians.
Edwin additionally highlighted the broader impression of Dangote’s industrial ventures, notably in stimulating competitors and progress in key sectors of the Nigerian financial system. He cited the Dangote Sugar Refinery for instance, noting that its success paved the best way for different firms, together with BUA Group and Nigerian Flour Mills to spend money on sugar manufacturing.
“We’ve seen it with sugar, and we’ve seen it with cement. The success of Dangote Cement led to the emergence of players like BUA, Mangal, and the expansion of Lafarge,” he mentioned. “In the same way, the success of this refinery will drive the emergence of more private refineries in Nigeria.”
According to him, the Dangote Refinery will not be solely serving to to deal with Nigeria’s long-standing reliance on imported refined merchandise however can be setting the tempo for a sustainable and aggressive refining trade that can profit the broader financial system.
He famous that the Dangote Group has grow to be a nurturing floor for Nigerian engineers, scientists and technicians, lots of whom have gone on to work as expatriates in numerous international locations. He assured the labour leaders of the corporate’s steadfast dedication to human capital improvement, workers welfare, and the general wellbeing of the financial system, emphasising that Aliko Dangote is a patriotic Nigerian absolutely devoted to the nation’s progress.
