Writing By Salihu Tsibiri; Editing By Yusuf Zubairu
The Founder of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has cautioned against using the cry of monopoly to discourage indigenous investment and industrial growth in Nigeria.
Dangote made this observation at the 2025 Inaugural Downstream Petroleum Week, organized by the House of Representatives Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream) during the committee’s annual inaugural meeting in Abuja.
Represented by the Group Chief Strategy Officer at Dangote Industries Limited, Aliyu Suleman, Alhaji Aliko Dangote called for focus on policies that encourage productivity, innovation, and competition in the petroleum industry.
He said many people with the means to build industries chose instead to invest abroad while he chosen to get to Nigeria to build in the country, to employ and produce there to add a little value to the nation’s economy assuring those who want to build their own refineries his full support at whatever level.
“Nigeria holds the natural competitive advantage in refining. We enjoy proximity to oil and gas supply. We should therefore work together to develop this sector.
Aliko Dangote however, confirmed that the Dangote Refinery can meet all of Nigeria’s demand for diesel and jet fuel and still have surplus for exports stressing his refinery would be listed on the stock exchange, giving Nigerians the opportunity to become shareholders of this national asset.
In a message, Speaker of the House Dr Abbas Tajuddeen, lauded the operational take-off of the Dangote Refinery, describing it as a turning point in Nigeria’s quest for energy self-sufficiency.
The Speaker further called on stakeholders in the petroleum industry to work collaboratively to reposition Nigeria’s downstream sector for sustainable growth, transparency, and innovation.
The Chairman House Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream), Hon. Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere, described the summit as more than a formal gathering, but a national dialogue aimed at repositioning the downstream petroleum sector as a driver of economic growth, innovation, and industrial development.
Also in a remark, Minister of state for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Mr Ekperikpe Ekpo, called for sustained collaboration between the Executive and Legislature to address the lingering challenges in Nigeria’s downstream petroleum and gas sectors.
COV /TSIBIRI
