Africa’s richest industrialist and President of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, on Saturday hosted the Group Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd), Bayo Ojulari, on a strategic facility tour of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals complex.
The high-level visit, which took place on February 21, 2026, focused on ongoing operational collaboration and major infrastructure upgrades at the refinery’s marine and port facilities, underscoring Nigeria’s ambition to strengthen domestic refining capacity and expand its footprint in regional energy logistics.
Harbour Expansion to Drive Export Growth
A technical session held at the refinery’s harbour was led in part by Captain Satendra Singh Rana, Head of Port Infrastructure and Marine Operations. He outlined sweeping upgrades designed to increase export efficiency and position Nigeria as a competitive energy and bunkering hub in West Africa.
Rana disclosed that the refinery’s urea fertiliser production capacity is being expanded from three million tonnes per annum to nine million tonnes. At full scale, he said, the plant is projected to become the largest fertiliser facility in the world.
To enhance logistics efficiency, the company is transitioning from truck-based loading, currently averaging about 30 tonnes per trip, to a fully automated conveyor system linking the fertiliser plant directly to the jetty. The shift is expected to significantly reduce turnaround time and operational costs.
New Jetties, Deeper Harbour
The expansion plan includes extending the harbour and constructing four additional tanker jetties to handle key petroleum products such as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), gasoline, gas oil, and aviation fuel.
According to Rana, the upgraded infrastructure will accommodate vessels of up to 250 metres in length, equivalent to roughly 100,000 deadweight tonnes, while also serving smaller vessels for domestic distribution.
The harbour, which currently operates at a depth of about nine metres and handles approximately 33,000 tonnes per vessel, is being deepened to 14.5 metres. Upon completion, it will enable the loading of up to 60,000 tonnes per ship for urea exports and allow larger tankers to berth at the facility.
Rana further highlighted a distinctive engineering feature of the port, a sand-built breakwater, which he described as the only one of its kind globally.
The structure, he noted, is more sustainable, faster to construct, and significantly more cost-effective than conventional rock-based breakwaters.
The innovation has reportedly attracted academic interest from universities studying its potential application in future port developments.
Strategic Energy Collaboration
During the visit, Dangote provided additional insights into the refinery’s long-term export and logistics strategy, while Ojulari engaged technical teams on operational capacity, scalability, and future expansion plans.
Images shared on the official social media platforms of the Dangote Group showed the NNPC GCEO alongside Aminu Dangote and senior executives during the guided tour of the expansive refinery complex.
The visit comes as the Dangote Refinery continues to ramp up production and consolidate its role in Nigeria’s drive for energy security, reduced fuel imports, and enhanced foreign exchange earnings through exports.
Industry analysts view the strengthening collaboration between the privately-owned refinery and the state oil company as critical to achieving sustainable domestic refining, stabilising fuel supply, and positioning Nigeria as a dominant energy player in West Africa.
