The Dangote Petroleum Refinery has revealed that it has faced no fewer than 22 incidents of attempted sabotage since it commenced operations last year, even as the company maintained that the recent restructuring exercise had nothing to do with the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN).
The reorganisation, which reportedly affected around 800 workers, had sparked a strike action by the oil workers’ union before it was suspended following swift intervention by the Federal Government.
Speaking to journalists during a guided tour of the facility, Vice President, Oil and Gas, Dangote Industries Limited, Mr. Devakumar Edwin, disclosed that the refinery has been the target of a series of coordinated attempts to disrupt operations and damage critical equipment. He noted that the refinery’s advanced safety and security systems successfully contained all the incidents.
“We have been under repeated attacks. Initially, they said the refinery would never come up. Then, they said it would not be commissioned or start production. Later, they spread false news about gas supply problems. Now, they are trying to insinuate operational breakdowns. None of that is true,” Edwin said.
He dismissed insinuations that the refinery was facing operational or crude supply problems, describing the claims as “completely wrong” and a deliberate effort to discredit the refinery’s achievements.
Currently, the refinery boasts over 312 million litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) in its storage tanks, alongside active daily production. With a processing capacity of 650,000 barrels per day, the plant can fully meet Nigeria’s petrol, diesel (AGO), and aviation fuel (Jet A1) demand, while still exporting about half of its output.
Former presidential aide and social media influencer Reno Omokri, who toured the facility, urged Nigerians to rally behind the refinery’s success.
“In less than a year, 650 ships have come here to load petroleum products for export. That’s an incredible achievement,” Omokri said.
He stressed that the strength of a nation’s currency depends not on the volume of money in circulation but on the productivity and export capacity of its economy.
“What matters most for Nigerians is not the amount of money we have, but the value of that money. The naira in your wallet will not have value if we do not export or replace imports with locally made goods and services,” he stated.
Also lending his voice, the Chairman of Bayelsa Traditional Rulers’ Council, Bubaraye Dakolo, described the project as a “revolutionary investment” that must be sustained.
“This is more than a refinery; it’s a national economic lifeline,” Dakolo said, commending the Dangote Group for its vision and scale of impact on Nigeria’s economy.
