Dangote Petroleum Refinery is currently undergoing test runs for petrol production, with full operation expected to commence by mid-September.
Citing a note by IIR Energy, an oil industry monitor, a report by Reuters said the date could be extended further.
According to the report, IIR said in a note to clients that “it is possible that there could be further extensions”.
The IIR Energy provides real-time, supply-side global market intelligence for the commodity trading community.
The spokesperson of Dangote refinery, Anthony Chiejina, who spoke on the issue dismissed most foreign media report as merely speculative saying the facility is on course to deploy resources to both local and international markets as scheduled.
Most of these foreign media outlets believes in speculative reports and this happened November and December last year when they doubted our diesel and aviation jet fuel production but today we are in the market, he said .
The timing is not the issue but sustainable output and supply efficiency at the right time should be our concern but nonetheless the targeted supply time is running as scheduled, he asserted.
Meanwhile, members of the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria and their counterparts in the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria said they were still awaiting the price of the product from the $20bn plant.
The report stated that the Federal Government also disclosed that the sale of crude oil to Dangote Refinery and other local refineries will commence on October 1, 2024.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, announced this during a meeting with the Implementation Committee in Abuja.
Also at the meeting, the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, Dr Zacch Adedeji, and the Chairman of the Technical Sub-Committee reported that “The first PMS delivery from Dangote is expected next month under existing agreements.”
The National Operations Controller of IPMAN, Mustapha Zarma, said oil dealers were still waiting for the cost of a litre of petrol from the refinery.
“There is no cost yet. When the product is available, they will release the cost. But they are test-running the plants now,” Zarma stated.
He, however, pointed out that oil marketers may not be able to buy petrol from Dangote refinery if the cost is the actual market price, stressing that the pump price of PMS is currently lower than the actual market price.
“Even if there is a price from the refinery, you cannot buy their product. At the prevailing retail price, you cannot buy their product. You can only buy it if they (Dangote) go into agreement with the government or unless the policy on petrol pricing changes,” Zarma stated
He reiterated the recent revelation of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited that the pump prices of petrol in Nigeria were far below the landing cost of the commodity.
Zarma said Dangote would not sell his product below his cost price, except if the government intervenes. The government, through NNPCL, is the sole importer of petrol into Nigeria and it bears the burden of subsidising the cost of the product.
It would be recalled that the President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, announced on May 18, 2024, that from June, the refinery would begin producing petrol, adding that Nigeria would not have to import the product again.
In June, he stated that due to a minor delay, the refinery would commence petrol supply in July.
The July target was then moved to August before the government announced on August 20 that the plant would release PMS in September