Whatever constitutes any threat to smooth operation by the Dangote Refinery established to boost the refining capacity of Nigeria and Africa should be promptly tackled to ensure that the objectives of the project are realised for the benefit of the continent and other stakeholders. 
  
Barely six months after it began operations, the Dangote Refinery has raised the alarm that the International Oil Companies (IOCs) operating in Nigeria are doing everything possible to frustrate and sabotage the refinery’s efforts to purchase local crude by intentionally inflating the premium price of crude above the market rate and refusing to supply local crude to the refinery. Consequently, the refinery has resorted to purchasing its crude from the United States just to ensure that it remains operational and achieves its objective.

This alleged sabotage has elicited public outrage and condemnation. Civil society organisations, Nigerian students, and social media users have urged the Federal Government to protect the Dangote Refinery from the evil plans of saboteurs. They also called on the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) to support the Dangote Refinery by providing it with the crude oil it badly needs to function and produce diesel and other products. Some have equally argued that the country is not producing enough to meet Dangote’s demands.

We join others in calling on the Federal Government and regulators to provide the necessary support and protect the Dangote refinery from all forms of sabotage to enable it to achieve its objectives, leading to economic prosperity and human flourishing in Nigeria. The Dangote refinery is poised to be one of the largest in Africa and potentially one of the largest in the world. It is expected to produce a significant volume of refined products, which could lead to price stabilisation or even reduction in Nigeria and the rest of Africa.

The refinery has been in operation since January this year, producing diesel, aviation fuel, and naphtha, with the Nigerian market now enjoying the benefit of in-country production of petroleum products. The plant is acclaimed to have the capacity to meet 100 per cent of Nigeria’s consumption needs for all refined products (including petrol – 53 million litres per day; diesel – 34 million litres per day; kerosene- 10 million litres per day; and aviation Jet fuel – two million litres per day) and has a surplus of each of the products for export, thus ending Nigeria’s dependence on imported petroleum products.

The IOCs have significant geopolitical influence and are likely seeing the Dangote Refinery as a shift in the power balance within the oil and gas industry in Africa. This could lead to efforts to undermine the success of the refinery to maintain their influence. Therefore, the refinery deserves every protection from the President Bola Tinubu government. There is no doubt that the objective of the IOCs is to ensure that Nigeria remains a poor country that exports crude oil and imports refined petroleum products. Their goal is to see the failure of the Dangote’s $19 billion refining facility so that Nigeria continues to import refined petroleum products. These foreign companies are keen on displacing the Dangote Refinery by exporting the raw materials to their home countries, creating employment and wealth for their countries, and leaving Nigeria in poverty. These companies have been exporting our crude oil for the last 60 years while sabotaging our local refineries and ensuring they are dysfunctional.

The painful aspect is the allegation that the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) still grants import licences indiscriminately to marketers to import dirty refined products into the country. The NMDPRA has however denied the claim made by the leadership of Dangote Refinery that there is imported dirty fuel in the country. The Authority stated that it would never encourage the importation of dirty fuel into the country, adding that it ensures that only quality petroleum products are consumed by Nigerians.

There are also concerns that the Nigerian government and NNPCL are issuing import licences to IOCs so they can continue to function at the expense of our local refineries. The IOCs want to continue exporting crude and raw materials to their home countries so that Nigeria would continue to buy the refined products from them and remain dependent on them. Therefore, the Federal Government should protect the Dangote Refinery and other local refineries in Nigeria.

Protecting local refineries from potential sabotage requires a multifaceted approach that includes security, legal, diplomatic, and economic measures. The government should enforce laws aimed at protecting critical infrastructure from sabotage. Specifically, it should enforce section 109 (1) (4)(a) of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021, which stipulates that the supply of crude oil should be predicated on a willing supplier and willing buyer basis, and that crude oil may only be sold to holders of crude oil licences whose refineries are in operation. The Tinubu government should engage in intelligence-sharing agreements with international partners to preempt and thwart sabotage plots. It should constantly dialogue and maintain open channels of communication with the IOCs to address grievances and foster a cooperative environment. The government should run public awareness campaigns to educate the populace about the importance of the refinery and the dangers of sabotage.

Finally, the Tinubu government should propose joint security initiatives with the IOCs to protect refineries and other critical infrastructure. It should encourage partnerships and collaborations between Dangote Refinery and IOCs to align their respective interests and thus discourage sabotage.