Nigeria’s Dangote refinery boosts exports to ease Africa’s supply crunch

Nigeria's Dangote refinery, Africa's largest, has increased exports of gasoline and urea to African countries hit by supply disruptions caused by the Iran war, its owner Aliko Dangote said on Monday (April 6).

Dangote said the refinery, which is operating at its maximum capacity of 650,000 barrels a day, had helped cushion the impact of the crisis in Nigeria and across the continent. He added that the facility had shipped around 17 cargoes of gasoline to other African nations and that exports of urea fertiliser had also risen recently, as buyers sought alternative sources of supply.

The refinery has the capacity to produce up to 3 million metric tons of urea annually, most of which is typically exported to the United States and South America, officials say.

Fuel prices in oil-producing Nigeria have reached record-high levels, industry figures show, as maximum output from the Dangote refinery has not offset the impact of high global crude prices. Dangote, speaking during a tour of the refinery near Lagos attended by United Nations Deputy Secretary‑General Amina Mohammed, said the refinery hoped to secure more crude cargoes priced in local currency to help curb fuel costs.

-Production: Kazeem Sanni, Abraham Achirga, Raquel Muigai/Reuters