The first million barrels of Agbami crude grade have been delivered to Dangote Refinery by Shell International Trading and Shipping Company Limited (STASCO), marking a significant advancement in Nigeria’s domestic refining capability.
The Dangote Refinery said in a statement on Friday that the cargo sailed to the facility’s Single-Point Mooring (SPM) and was then emptied into the refinery’s tanks holding crude oil.
The statement stated that the STASCO shipment, which included one million barrels from Agbami, was discharged into the crude oil tanks of the Dangote Refinery at its Single Point Mooring (SPM) location.
The first one million barrels of crude supplies, the first part of the six million barrels that the refinery will get from several sources, according to the firm, should be sufficient to support the first 350,000 barrels per day required for the plant to start producing crude.
ExxonMobil will supply the last six cargoes, while the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) will supply the following four in two to three weeks, according to the statement.
“With this supply, the refinery will be able to start up and produce diesel, aviation fuel, and LPG, which will pave the way for the production of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) later on.”
After years of delay, the plant in Lagos State’s Lekki neighbourhood was officially opened by former President Muhammadu Buhari in May. It is touted as Africa’s largest oil refinery.
Constructed by the wealthiest person in Africa, Aliko Dangote, the plant was supposed to start operations in June but was unable to do so due to a shortage of crude oil. It can process 650,000 barrels per day when operating at full capacity.
An important turning point for Nigeria’s energy industry is Friday’s cargo. Despite being the most populous country in Africa and one of the major suppliers of crude oil, the nation has been dependent on imports to meet domestic demand due to underperforming state-run refineries.
Nigeria traded billions of dollars’ worth of crude oil for petrol that it had previously subsidised for its own market. However, the government was forced to cut the subsidy due to the significant financial burden on foreign exchange during a period of declining oil earnings.
But now that the new oil refinery is being shipped, the establishment is set to change the game.
“In the upcoming months, we intend to fully load the refinery.” The first batch of products we supply to the Nigerian market would mark a significant milestone, according to Mr. Aliko Dangote, President of the Dangote Group.
The new plant, which is expected to cost $19 billion, is located in the Lekki Free Zone on 2,635 hectares (6,500 acres) of land.
