African Development Bank President Akinwumi Adesina has described Dangote oil refinery and petrochemical plant in Nigeria as a “game-changing initiative” that will spur Africa’s development and deepen regional integration,
“This is a world-class industrial complex that will make Nigeria and Africa proud,”. Adesina said during a recent tour of the $19.5 billion Nigerian greenfield crude oil refinery and petrochemicals owned by the Dangote Industries Limited.
The refinery, with a capacity to process 650,000 barrels of crude oil a day, will be commissioned by the end of the year.It will have the capacity to meet all of Nigeria’s requirements for refined products with a surplus for export and is the largest single train petroleum refinery in the world, said Aliko Dangote, president and chief executive of the Dangote Group.
The goal is that by 2023, Nigeria will import zero petroleum oil products–down from approximately $50 billion current oil products imports a year, the African Development Bank noted in their statement
When the project is successfully completed of the refinery project is expected to have a significant impact on Nigeria’s foreign exchange through import substitution and substantial savings in earnings. It could be recalled that in 2014, the AfDB’s board approved a $300 million loan to Dangote Industries to support the construction and operation of the greenfield crude oil refinery and the greenfield fertilizer manufacturing plant
