President and Chief Executive Officer of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has stated that Nigeria’s four state-owned refineries would struggle to attract buyers even if they were put up for sale, blaming regulatory failures and an unfavourable investment climate.
Speaking during a briefing in Lagos, Dangote traced the challenges in Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector to regulatory mismanagement under the previous administration. He criticised the decision to appoint a trader as a regulator, describing it as a fundamental mismatch that discouraged investment.
According to him, the flawed regulatory framework created uncertainty for both local and foreign investors, worsening the crisis in the sector and leaving the country to bear the consequences.
Dangote warned that the current environment makes refinery investment unattractive, stressing that no investor would be willing to commit funds under such conditions. He argued that even if the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Limited decided to sell its refineries, there would be no willing buyers.
Nigeria’s state-owned refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna, with a combined capacity of about 445,000 barrels per day, have long suffered from underperformance despite repeated spending on turnaround maintenance, forcing the country to continue relying heavily on imported fuel.
