According to Daniel Kunle, a former Technical Adviser to the Minister of Petroleum Resources, the Dangote refinery has the capacity to guarantee the nation’s petroleum supply for the next ten years until the country transitions to electric vehicles.
Kunle made these remarks in an interview on Channels Television Politics Today on Thursday evening, addressing the controversies surrounding the Dangote refinery and the reemergence of fuel queues across the country.
He pointed out, “The cumulative production of the four government refineries – the small one in Port Harcourt constructed in 1965, the larger one built in 1988, the Warri refinery in 1978, and Kaduna in 1980 – would not exceed 20 million liters of petrol per day for Nigeria. However, the Dangote refinery alone has the capacity to produce about 50 million liters of petrol daily.
“Therefore, it will play a significant role in securing the country’s fuel supply. The output from the Dangote refinery over the next five years will facilitate the transition to electricity,” he emphasized.
Kunle criticized the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) for its shortcomings, highlighting its failure to produce up to 2 million barrels of crude oil per day or to provide 300 thousand barrels of crude to the Dangote refinery.
He recommended that the Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of NNPC should step down from their positions.
Describing NNPC as a “bureaucratic clerical entity,” Kunle stated that the corporation lacks the infrastructure to supply crude oil to Dangote for processing.
He contended, “NNPC does not engage in crude oil production. They merely handle documentation. It is essentially a bureaucratic clerical entity that does not engage in actual production.
“They have stakes in various assets, holding 60 percent in some and 55 percent in others. Nevertheless, they do not have the capacity to provide what they do not possess.
“The current leadership has failed the nation, constituting a major disappointment. Over the last decade, have they reached the 2 million barrels per day target with our reserves? If the system is ineffective, the person in charge should step down. In a civilized society, amid such widespread discontent, the voice of the people is paramount. Resignation is warranted.
“In fact, their performance is a disgrace to the President. How can they not fulfill even a 300 to 400 thousand (barrels) supply to Dangote? Where will they source it from?” he questioned.