Following the controversy that erupted between the Dangote petroleum refinery and National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas workers, NUPENG/PTD to derail the planned free fuel distribution logistics initiative, the management of Dangote Refinery said last night that there is no going back on the plan. According to Dangote group, the initiative lack substance, adding that the attacks lack genuine and patriotic concerns.
Released in a statement last night, Dangote Refinery said the position of National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN) lacks legitimacy and has nothing to do with the unionisation as being claimed.
The statement partly said, “Their position have made it abundantly clear that the actions and threats issued by them is not borne out of legitimate concerns about unionisation, but a calculated campaign of economic sabotage that is orchestrated by vested interests who perceive progress as a threat to their entrenched positions.”
Reacting to a press statement by DAPPMAN, which was published, in some newspapers at the weekend, Dangote Refinery accused the association of misleading Nigerians, noting that their claims were contradicted by established facts.
The statement by Dangote Refinery reads: “In January 2022, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) reported that one of DAPPMAN’s members had supplied petrol containing over 15% methanol, well above acceptable limits (Methanol which is not a standard industry practice or procedure for refinery, but blenders use it to prompt up the octane rating to an acceptable level that is well above anti-knocking ratio).
“The result was widespread engine damage for thousands of end users. Yet, no transparent government inquiry or independent investigation was ever conducted to determine the source, intent, or full impact of the adulterated fuel.”
The refinery also described as incorrect, the claim that the price of petrol in Togo is lower than in Nigeria. It revealed that the average pump price in Lomé stands at approximately 680 CFA francs per litre, equivalent to N1, 826.
“This figure reflects the very scenario that DAPPMAN and its affiliates appear to advocate for in Nigeria. The Dangote Refinery has positioned
Nigeria as a primary source of affordable petrol feedstock for West Africa, despite the refinery importing over 60% of the crude oil it processes. Remarkably, the refinery is able to offer petrol at prices below the international benchmark within the sub-Saharan region.
