The Dangote Oil Refinery has already begun to change the face of oil trading in Africa and Europe.
Global oil giants like Vitol, Trafigura, and BP are leading the purchase of refined fuel from the massive facility, which lies on the coast near Lagos.
Since the refinery’s operations began in mid-2024, these companies have been the primary buyers, marking a shift in regional fuel supply.
According to Precise Intelligence, a new analytics firm based in Geneva, the Dangote refinery has processed nearly 45 million barrels of crude so far, loading around 6 million tons of fuel, with October alone seeing an average daily load of 35,000 tons.
This marks a major milestone for Nigeria, a country that has long struggled with refining its crude oil.
With a capacity to process 650,000 barrels of oil per day, Dangote’s facility is now one of the most powerful refineries in the world.
This refinery, set to ease the supply of fuel in both Africa and Europe, has already contributed to reducing Nigeria’s crude oil surplus.
Speaking at the recent Africa Energy Week in South Africa, Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, stressed the importance of Africa charting its energy path. Also, Lokpobiri introduced the recently launched Africa Energy Bank (AEB).
The bank, headquartered in Nigeria, aims to support energy projects tailored to Africa’s development goals, providing an alternative to foreign loans often tied to external policies.
The minister explained that this bank would give African countries the unique advantage of securing financing that aligns directly with the continent’s needs.
“Now, African nations have the means to secure funding that is focused on our goals,” Lokpobiri stated, describing it as a step toward reducing dependency on international financing that may not always align with Africa’s energy vision.
He also extended an open invitation to global investors to consider the vast potential of Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.
The minister highlighted significant opportunities for investors in the upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors, urging collaboration to fuel Nigeria’s energy transformation.
“We invite global investors to partner with us in building a resilient energy sector in Nigeria,” he said.
