Economy
Cheap, Toxic Petroleum Products From Russia Flooding African Markets—Dangote
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Foremost Nigerian businessman, Mr Aliko Dangote, has climbed to the rooftop to alert over the growing influx of discounted, low-quality fuel originating from Russia, blended with Russian crude under price caps and dumped in African markets.
He, therefore, called on African governments to follow the example of the United States, Canada, and the European Union, which have implemented protective measures for domestic refiners.
“We are now facing increasing dumping of cheap, often toxic, petroleum products—some of which are blended to substandard levels that would never be allowed in Europe or North America,” Mr Dangote lamented at the West African Refined Fuel Conference held in Abuja.
The crude oil refinery owner in Lagos said due to the continent’s limited domestic refining capacity, Africa imports over 120 million tonnes of refined petroleum products annually, at a cost of approximately $90 billion.
“As we speak today, we buy 9 – 10 million barrels of crude monthly from US and other countries. I must thank NNPC for making some cargoes of Nigerian crude available to us from start of production to date,” he disclosed at the event organised by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and S&P Global Commodity Insights.
While appreciating the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited for making some cargoes of Nigerian crude available to his facility from start of production to date, he revealed that the company, monthly import between 9-10 million barrels of crude from the United States of America and other countries.
According to him, despite producing around 7 million barrels of crude oil per day, Africa only refines about 40% of its 4.3 million barrels daily consumption of refined products domestically. In stark contrast, Europe and Asia refine over 95 per cent of what they consume.
“So, while we produce plenty of crude, we still import over 120 million tonnes of refined petroleum products each year, effectively exporting jobs and importing poverty into our continent. That’s a $90 billion market opportunity being captured by regions with surplus refining capacity. To put this in perspective: only about 15 per cent of African countries have a GDP greater than $90 billion. We are effectively handing over an entire continent’s economic potential to others—year after year,” he said.
While reaffirming his belief in the power of free markets and international cooperation, Mr Dangote emphasised that trade must be grounded in economic efficiency and comparative advantage — not at the expense of quality or safety standards.
He stressed that, “it defies logic and economic sense for Africa to be exporting raw crude only to re-import refined products—products we are more than capable of producing ourselves, closer to both source and consumption.”
Reflecting on the experience of delivering the world’s largest single-train refinery, the industrialist also highlighted a range of challenges faced, including technical, commercial, and contextual hurdles unique to the African landscape.
Africa’s wealthiest man described building refineries such as the Dangote Petroleum Refinery as one of the most capital-intensive and logistically complex industrial facilities ever constructed. The Dangote refinery project, he said, required clearing 2,735 hectares of land (seven times the size of Victoria Island), of which 70 per cent was swampy, requiring the pumping of 65 million cubic metres of sand to stabilise the site and raise it by 1.5 metres, over 250,000 foundation piles, and millions of metres of piping, cabling, and electrical wiring among others.
“At peak, we had over 67,000 people on-site of which 50,000 are Nigerians, coordinating around the clock across hundreds of disciplines and nationalities. Then, of course, came the COVID-19 pandemic which set us back by two years and brought new levels of complexity, disruption, and risk. But we persevered,” he noted.
The refinery also required the construction of a dedicated seaport, as existing Nigerian ports could not handle the size and volume of equipment required. This included over 2,500 pieces of heavy equipment, 330 cranes, and even the establishment of the world’s largest granite quarry, with a production capacity of 10 million tonnes per year.
“In short, we didn’t just build a refinery—we built an entire industrial ecosystem from scratch,” he said.
Despite the refinery’s technical success, Dangote identified significant commercial challenges, particularly exchange rates which have gone from N156/$ at inception to N1,600/$ at completion, and challenges around crude oil sourcing. Although Nigeria is said to produce about 2 million barrels per day, the refinery has struggled to secure crude at competitive terms.
“Rather than buying crude oil directly from Nigerian producers at competitive terms, we found ourselves having to negotiate with international trading companies, who were buying Nigerian crude and reselling it to us—with hefty premiums, of course.
“Logistics and regulatory bottlenecks have also taken a toll. Port and regulatory charges reportedly account for 40 per cent of total freight costs, sometimes costing two-thirds as much as chartering the vessel itself.
“Refiners in India, who purchase crude oil from regions even farther away, enjoy lower freight costs than we do right here in West Africa because they are not saddled with exorbitant port charges,” Mr Dangote said.
He added that, in terms of port charges, it is currently more expensive to load a domestic cargo of petroleum products from the Dangote Refinery, as customers pay both at the point of loading and at the point of discharge. In contrast, when they load from Lomé, which competes with them, they pay only at the point of discharge.
Dangote further criticised the lack of harmonised fuel standards across African nations, which creates artificial barriers for regional trade in refined products.
“The fuel we produce for Nigeria cannot be sold in Cameroon or Ghana or Togo, even though we all drive the same vehicles. This lack of harmonisation benefits no one—except, of course, international traders, who thrive on arbitrage. For local refiners like us, it fragments the market and imposes unnecessary inefficiencies.”
Mr Dangote, stating the challenge with diesel production in Africa, noted, “To give one example, the diesel cloud point for Nigeria is 4 degrees. Without going into the technical details, this means that the diesel should work at a temperature of 4 degrees centigrade. Achieving this comes at a cost to us and limits the types of crude we could process. But how many places in Nigeria experience temperatures of 4 degrees? Other African countries have a more reasonable range of 7 to 12 degrees. This is a low hanging fruit which could be addressed by the regulators.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The chief executive of the Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc, Mr Shehu Yahaya Shantali, says Nigeria’s shift to a T+1 settlement cycle goes beyond faster transactions and is intended to deepen long-term growth in the capital market.
Speaking at a ceremony marking the commencement of T+1 settlement in Lagos, Mr Shantali described the development as a strategic milestone that goes beyond faster transaction timelines to reinforce the market’s structural strength and future readiness.
According to him, the shortened settlement cycle reflects years of investment in infrastructure, technology, and stakeholder collaboration aimed at transforming Nigeria into a globally competitive investment destination.
Nigeria recently became the first market in Africa to adopt the T+1 framework, reducing the settlement period for securities transactions from two days to one.
According to the boss of the securities depository firm, the shortened settlement cycle reflects years of investment in infrastructure, technology, and stakeholder collaboration aimed at transforming Nigeria into a globally competitive investment destination.
“These investments are not solely for T+1 settlement but to position Nigeria’s capital market for sustained growth and longterm competitiveness,” he said.
The migration from T+1 settlement is expected to enhance liquidity, improve capital efficiency, and reduce counterparty risk across the market.
Mr Shantali explained that the T+1 transition represents the culmination of a decades-long evolution from a manual, paper-based system to a fully automated, technology-driven post-trade environment.
He recalled that investors previously waited several months to complete transactions under the old system, but successive reforms, including transitions to T+5, T+3, and T+2, steadily improved efficiency and market integrity.
The latest upgrade, he said, builds on extensive preparations undertaken over the past three years, including system enhancements, process optimisation, and market-wide readiness assessments coordinated by the SEC and industry stakeholders.
On his part, the Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Mr Emomotimi Agama, said the reform signals Nigeria’s readiness to compete at the highest levels of global finance, noting that the country transitioned from T+2 to T+1 within six months.
“The era of T+1 has begun,” Mr Agama said, adding that shorter settlement cycles are critical to attracting global capital and strengthening investor confidence.
He noted that leading markets such as the United States, Canada, and India have already adopted T+1 settlement, while several European markets are preparing to migrate, making Nigeria’s transition a crucial step in maintaining international relevance.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Many private sector operators have yet to experience the anticipated gains of President Bola Tinubu’s reforms as they continue to grapple with inflation, energy costs and exchange rate volatility, the Director-General of the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA), Mr Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, has said.
Mr Oyerinde acknowledged that the removal of fuel subsidy and liberalisation of the foreign exchange market reflected the government’s commitment to market-driven economic policies and improved transparency across sectors.
He said the reforms had enhanced fuel availability, reduced recurring supply disruptions and signalled policy consistency to both local and foreign investors, but noted that while there are indications of improved investor confidence, many domestic businesses, particularly Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), continue to contend with operational challenges.
The NEC chief said the depreciation of the Naira had increased production costs, affected competitiveness and heightened operational risks for many businesses.
“Many private sector operators are yet to experience the anticipated gains of the reforms as they continue to grapple with inflation, energy costs and exchange rate volatility,” he said in a recent interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) while assessing the administration’s economic performance.
Mr Oyerinde said declining consumer purchasing power and increasing production expenses had placed pressure on businesses, with some firms adjusting investment plans and operations in response to prevailing economic conditions.
On infrastructure and refining, the NECA DG said developments in housing, industrial investments and local petroleum refining had created opportunities and contributed to improved fuel supply.
He, however, identified power supply as a major challenge facing businesses, citing persistent grid instability and reliance on alternative energy sources.
“In spite of the ongoing reforms in the power sector, insufficient electricity supply remains the number one constraint to business productivity and competitiveness across the country,” he said.
Mr Oyerinde said that although some macroeconomic indicators, including foreign reserves and government revenues, had shown improvement, the gains were yet to be broadly reflected in business operations and household welfare.
“Inflation, high energy costs, multiple taxation, logistics challenges and weak consumer spending continue to constrain productivity and limit business expansion,” he said.
He said employers remained cautious about large-scale recruitment amid high borrowing costs, foreign exchange volatility and rising operating expenses.
According to him, sustainable job creation will depend on deeper structural reforms that reduce the cost of doing business and improve access to affordable finance.
He urged the government to prioritise stable power supply, lower energy costs, tax harmonisation, policy consistency and foreign exchange stability to accelerate economic recovery and strengthen investor confidence.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange recorded its best performance this year on Tuesday, June 2, closing higher by 1.89 per cent.
During the session, the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) went up by 81.62 points to 4,406.30 points from the preceding day’s 4,324.68 points, and the market capitalisation added N48.48 billion to close at N2.636 trillion compared with Monday’s N2.587 trillion.
Business Post reports that the bourse recorded five price gainers and one price loser, Geo-Fluid Plc, which fell by 1 Kobo to N2.87 per unit from N2.88 per unit.
Conversely, Nipco Plc gained N31.57 to sell at N347.27 per share versus N315.70 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc grew by N9.86 to N196.51 per unit from N186.68 per unit, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc improved by N3.13 to N76.10 per share from N72.97 per share, Food Concepts Plc added 27 Kobo to sell at N2.95 per unit compared with the preceding day’s N2.68 per unit, and UBN Property Plc expanded by 17 Kobo to N2.20 per share from N2.03 per share.
Yesterday, the volume of securities transacted by investors depreciated by 91.4 per cent to 307,363 units from the previous session’s 3.6 million units, and the value of securities dropped 75.9 per cent to N42.8 million from the preceding session’s N177.4 million, while the number of deals went up by 13.5 per cent to 42 deals from Monday’s 37 deals.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc was the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 3.4 billion units traded for N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units sold for N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 64.3 million units exchanged for N4.4 billion.
GNI Plc also finished as the most active stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units valued at N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units sold for N415.7 million.
-
Feature/OPED6 years agoDavos was Different this year
-
Travel/Tourism10 years ago
Lagos Seals Western Lodge Hotel In Ikorodu
-
Showbiz3 years agoEstranged Lover Releases Videos of Empress Njamah Bathing
-
Banking8 years agoSort Codes of GTBank Branches in Nigeria
-
Economy3 years agoSubsidy Removal: CNG at N130 Per Litre Cheaper Than Petrol—IPMAN
-
Banking3 years agoSort Codes of UBA Branches in Nigeria
-
Banking3 years agoFirst Bank Announces Planned Downtime
-
Sports3 years agoHighest Paid Nigerian Footballer – How Much Do Nigerian Footballers Earn