The head of the Dangote Group and richest man in Africa, Aliko Dangote, has stated that certain oil dealers and representatives of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited operate blending units in Malta, a country in Southern Europe.
During his Monday speech in the House of Representatives, Dangote stated that all parties involved are familiar with the locations of the blending plants.
“Some of the terminals, NNPC employees, and traders have established mixing plants somewhere off Malta. We’re all familiar with these areas. We know what they’re doing,” Dangote remarked.
Dangote linked Nigeria’s automobile issues to inferior imported fuel, pointing out that locally-produced diesel is of higher quality than imported fuel.
He made a plea to the House of Representatives leadership to form an impartial committee to examine the quality of petrol available in Nigeria, especially that which is marketed at petrol stations.
“I must tell you today that all the test certifications that people are busy throwing around, where are the labs? This is why I want you to establish up a committee that will come with every representative led by your chosen honourable member to come and lead in taking samples from filling stations. Even if they have the labs, I can assure you that the certificates are bogus,” he claimed.
On Monday, the Joint Committee on Petroleum Resources (downstream and midstream) of the House of Representatives started looking into allegations that regional refineries make subpar goods.
The Nigerian government has not yet granted the Dangote Refinery a license to start operations in the nation, according to a statement made last Thursday by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
The CEO of NMDPRA, Farouk Ahmed, stated that the goods produced by Dangote Refinery are not as good as those from other countries.
“Dangote Refinery, as well as several major refineries, such as Walter Smith’s refinery, produce between 650 and 1,200 ppm. So, in terms of quality, they are far inferior than imported commodities,” he explained.
Dangote Group, on the other hand, denied the assertion and insisted that their goods were superior to those that were imported. The group stated that some organisations aim to irritate its chairman, Aliko Dangote since they are unhappy about his involvement in the oil industry.
“Until late last year, diesel imports into Nigeria contained up to 7,000 parts per million (ppm) of sulphur, a level that had been maintained for many years. Our diesel is currently produced at much lower levels of sulphur; as a result, we believe the assertion that the reason for the reduction is related to quality is unfounded. What we produce accounts for 80 percent of what is imported into the country,” said Anthony Chiejine, Dangote Industries Limited’s spokesperson.
