The Dangote refinery has announced that it will no longer be able to carry out its original intention to introduce premium motor spirit to the market this month.
Aliko Dangote, the president of the Dangote Group, said to reporters on Monday that the refinery’s 650,000 barrels per day of gasoline would run out in July.
Dangote stated that the goods would be available from July 10 to 15 and that this was because of a few small issues.
“We had a bit of delay, but PMS will start coming out by 10 to 15 of July. But then we want to keep it in the tank to ensure it settles. So by the third week of July, we’ll be able to come out to take it into the market,” Dangote had said.
Dangote announced last month that his refinery would stop bringing gasoline into Nigeria and would begin selling PMS in June, as The PUNCH recalls.
Dangote gave a speech at the Africa CEO Forum Annual Summit that was held recently in Kigali, Rwanda. He was upbeat about the continent’s energy situation.
“By sometime in June, within the next four or five weeks, Nigeria shouldn’t import anything like gasoline; not one drop of a litre,” he said. “Right now, Nigeria has no cause to import anything apart from gasoline.”
We have enough diesel and gasoline to supply Central and West Africa, if not all of West Africa. We have enough aviation fuel to export some to Brazil and Mexico in addition to providing it to the entire continent.
“We have begun manufacturing diesel and jet fuel, and by the end of the next month, we want to begin manufacturing gasoline. That will be able to handle the majority of African crude, Dangote informed the panel.
Marketers and Nigerians who were hoping that Dangote will lower the price of gasoline from about N700 to N500 or less seemed to find solace in his remarks.
