Lagos: The management of Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals has denied claims by S and P Global that Nigerian marketers are re-importing the fuels it exports to the Lom© trading hub in Togo, describing the claim as 'unfounded and misleading'.
According to Ghana Web, the company stated unequivocally that the allegation is not supported by verifiable trade data, commercial logic, or the operational realities of the Dangote refinery. A core mandate of the refinery is to strengthen domestic supply and remain a leading provider of petroleum products in Nigeria. The company emphasized that any practice enabling imports to compete directly with its own production contradicts this objective.
The management affirmed that all sales contracts and tender agreements expressly prohibit the resale or re-importation of Dangote refinery products into Nigeria. The economics of the purported trade route were described as fundamentally flawed, with estimated logistics costs for transporting products from the refinery to Lom© and back into Nigeria ranging between US$82-90 per metric tonne. Such additional costs would significantly erode margins and render the transaction commercially unviable.
Dangote refinery clarified that it does not provide export discounts sufficient to offset these costs or create arbitrage opportunities between export and domestic markets. The firm stated that no rational producer would incur additional costs only for products to re-enter and compete in its primary market.
The refinery maintains stringent product traceability protocols, including detailed records of lifting points, nominated vessels, counterparties, and declared destinations. These measures ensure full visibility and accountability across the supply chain. The statement insisted that any claim suggesting that the refinery facilitates or tolerates re-importation is inconsistent with its contractual safeguards and established compliance standards.
The refinery also noted its consistent advocacy for reducing Nigeria's dependence on imported petroleum products, emphasizing that encouraging or enabling re-importation would undermine local refining efforts, strain foreign exchange reserves, and weaken national industrial growth.
S and P Global Energy official, Matthew Tracey-Cook, mentioned during a webinar that Nigerian fuel marketers were increasingly importing refined petroleum products originating from the Dangote refinery through the offshore ship-to-ship trading hub in Lom©, Togo. Though he did not say the Dangote refinery was aware of the development, he noted that Dangote volumes on a coastal basis do arrive back in Lagos from Lom©.
The PUNCH reported allegations by some fuel importers in November 2025 that the Dangote refinery sells petrol to international traders at a cheaper rate than to marketers in Nigeria. However, the refinery has dismissed these allegations, with many questioning the feasibility of such claims given the logistical costs involved.
The Dangote refinery is currently in court to stop fuel importation into Nigeria.