By Ayomide Otitoju
ABUJA – On Tuesday, Mele Kyari, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), urged Aliko Dangote, President of Dangote Group, to publicly identify any NNPC personnel allegedly operating a blending plant in Malta. Over the weekend, Dangote, Africa’s richest man and owner of a $20 billion refinery in Lagos, accused some NNPC personnel and oil traders of running a blending plant in Malta, which he claimed hampers local petroleum production.
Regulatory authorities have previously questioned the quality of petroleum products produced at Dangote’s refinery, located in the Lekki Free Trade Zone. Dangote has consistently defended the quality of his refinery’s products, asserting that they surpass the quality of imported fuels. He has also pointed out that substandard imported fuel has damaged many cars in Nigeria. “I still stand by what I said. Go to filling stations, you can check the quality. That is the only way,” he reiterated.
“We know where they blend these things. Some of the NNPC people and some traders have opened a blending plant somewhere off Malta. We all know these areas. We know what they are doing,” Dangote said.
In his response, Kyari clarified his position, stating, “To clarify the allegations regarding the blending plant, I do not own or operate any business directly or by proxy anywhere in the world with the exception of a local mini Agric venture. Neither am I aware of any employee of the NNPC that owns or operates a blending plant in Malta or anywhere else in the world.”
He further emphasized, “A blending plant in Malta or any part of the world has no influence over NNPC’s business operations and strategic actions. For further assurance, our compliance sanction grid shall apply to any NNPC employee who is established to be involved in such activities if identified. I strongly recommend that such individuals be publicly declared and reported to relevant government security agencies for necessary actions, considering the grave implications for national energy security.”
Dangote’s refinery, which began operations last December with an initial capacity of 350,000 barrels per day, aims to reach its full capacity of 650,000 barrels per day by the end of the year. The refinery has already started supplying diesel and aviation fuel to local marketers, with petrol supply expected to commence in August amid regulatory scrutiny.
