The owner of Dangote Refinery and Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, has opened up about some of the challenges of operating in Nigeria’s oil industry, underscoring the controlling influence of some cartels.
According to him, the mafia in the oil industry is bigger than the drug cartel.
Dangote made the submission during an interview with Bloomberg on Monday.
According to him, “I never knew that the oil industry mafia is stronger than the drug cartel; it’s a big cartel. I will say this anywhere.”
He added that the mafia in the oil industry have the ability to control the prices of fuel in the country just for their own advantage or to prevent any unwanted competition.
The businessman, however, said Dangote Refinery would be able to outsmart them because it can take local currency (naira), but they can not.
Meanwhile, the Federal Government and Dangote Refinery have finalized an agreement for the supply of 12 million barrels of crude oil to the facility in October.
Aliko Dangote, the chief executive officer of Dangote Refinery, confirmed this information during an interview with Bloomberg TV in the United States.
He stated that the crude oil supply is a component of an ongoing agreement with the federal government, aimed at allowing the refinery to process crude domestically and produce petrol, diesel, and jet fuel for the local market.
Naijaonpoint understands that this arrangement is part of the “Crude Oil for Naira” initiative, which represents a strategic collaboration between the Dangote Group and the Nigerian government.