Dangote Says Oil Refinery Faces Ongoing Sabotage Threats, Impacting Operations

Nigeria’s Dangote Oil Refinery has raised serious concerns that repeated acts of sabotage are undermining its operations and driving up production challenges. Company officials allege that obstacles ranging from delayed crude supply to inflated pricing by local and international oil companies are part of a broader effort to stifle the refinery’s efficiency.

The refinery, which started production early in 2024, says it has had trouble securing enough crude from domestic sources. The Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission has been accused of failing to enforce supply obligations, while some International Oil Companies are said to either demand excessive premiums or claim supply is unavailable. These issues force Dangote to import crude, increasing costs significantly.

Civil society groups and lawmakers have backed calls for a probe, arguing that the refinery’s inability to maximize output not only hurts Dangote but also keeps Nigeria dependent on refined fuel imports. They point out that gaps in regulation, oversight, and crude allocation may be enabling sabotage to succeed.

Dangote’s claims suggest that the problem is not just technical or logistical but tied to vested interests within the industry that benefit from fuel imports and the status quo.