Nigeria Could Be Largest Oil Refiner in Africa by 2025, Report Says

Nigeria is retaining its position as Africa's No 1 oil producer with 1.235 million barrels per day (bpd) pumped in December. Angola comes next with 1.088 million bpd and Algeria is third with 1.01 million bpd, according to the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).

Nigeria could become the largest oil refiner in Africa by 2025, according to a report entitled 'Refineries Watch Q4 2022' by Hawilti, a pan-African investment research firm, cited by local media.

“Both the opening of the Dangote refinery and the rehabilitation of state-owned refineries have the potential to make Nigeria Africa’s biggest refining hub by 2025,” the report said.

The report referred to the construction of the Dangote refinery in the city of Lekki by the Dangote Group, a Nigerian multinational industrial conglomerate, which began in 2016 and was expected to end in late 2018. According to the report, the launch of the refinery is set for this year.

The Dangote refinery's estimated capacity is about 650,000 bpd of crude oil, which will make it the largest single-train refinery in the world when it is launched, the report stated.

Another way for Nigeria to realize its potential, according to Hawilti, is to rehabilitate its already existing state-owned refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna, the total refining capacity of which amounts to 445,000 barrels per day.

Overall, the fuel supply security of Africa is ready for significant transformations in 2023, and West Africa houses the largest refining capacity on the sub-continent with only 23 percent of it in operation, the report said.