The Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mele Kyari, on Wednesday said that the national oil company was not in competition with the Dangote refinery whenever it starts operation in Nigeria. He said the NNPC was rather providing support to the promoters of the project to boost in-country refining capacity.
Speaking while receiving the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, at the NNPC Towers, Mr Kyari explained that as the chief enabler of the Nigerian economy, the NNPC had a duty to rally industry players like Dangote Group to achieve the long held target of making Nigeria a net exporter of petroleum products.
A statement by NNPC spokesman, Ndu Ughamadu, said Mr Kyari assured that the same level of support would be provided to other promoters of refineries. He said the ultimate goal was to enhance in-country production to the point of self-sufficiency and ultimately for export.
Earlier in his presentation, Mr Dangote said the business approach of the Dangote refinery was to see NNPC as a collaborator rather than a competitor. He said the refinery would rely heavily on the corporation’s invaluable knowledge of the refining business in Nigeria to achieve its central objective.
Dangote aligned his company with the federal government’s aspiration to ensure adequate in-country refining capacity. He said upon completion, the refinery would dedicate 53 per cent of its projected 650,000 barrels per day refining capacity to the production of petrol.
“The most important thing for us is to see how we can partner with NNPC, it is not to see how we can compete with NNPC. We would like NNPC to be part of us and we also want to be part of NNPC. I think that is the only way we can achieve a win-win situation,” he said.
