Dangote Refinery has made a further move towards the commencement of production of refined petroleum products with the receipt of additional one million barrels of bonny light crude supplied by the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL).
The fresh one million barrels of crude from the Shell terminal via the MT Otis owned by Trafigural is the second consignment to be delivered to the Dangote facility out of the six million barrels of crude being expected by the world’s largest single-train refinery, reports Daily Trust.
About a week ago, Dangote Refinery received one million barrels of Agbami crude grade from Shell International Trading and Shipping Company Limited (STASCO), one of the largest trading companies in Nigeria as well as globally, trading over 8 million barrels of crude oil per day.
Managing Director of Dangote Ports Operations, Mr Akin Omole, told newsmen at the Dangote Quay, Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos that the refinery was expecting more crudes before the end of this year to put the refinery in good stead to commence operation.
The one million barrels represent the second phase of the 6 million barrels of crude oil to be supplied to Dangote Petroleum Refinery by a range of suppliers for the production of petroleum products.
Once the 6 million barrels are fully delivered, it will facilitate the initial run of the refinery as well as kick-start the production of diesel, aviation fuel, and LPG before subsequently progressing to the production of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS).
This latest development will play a pivotal role in alleviating the fuel supply challenges faced by Nigeria as well as the West African countries.
Designed for 100% Nigerian crude with the flexibility to process other crudes, the 650,000 barrels per day Dangote Petroleum Refinery can process most African crude grades as well as Middle Eastern Arab Light and even US Light tight oil as well as crude from other countries.