President of Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), Aliko Dangote, on Saturday, challenged wealthy Nigerians to bring back their monies abroad and invest at home, as he has consistently done over several decades, pushing back at allegations that he is monopolising the Nigerian economic climate.
Dangote, Africa’s richest man, who spoke on a day he took members of the House of Representatives round the mega 650,000 refining capacity Dangote Refinery built in Lagos, which authorities in the oil industry sector claimed on Friday, was churning out low-quality products.
“There are many other Nigerians who have more cash than us. They should bring that money from Dubai and other countries to come and invest in their own fatherland,” he told reporters during the visit, led by Tajudeen Abbas, Speaker of the House of Representatives and Benjamin Kalu, his deputy.
Farouk Ahmed, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), in what seemed an indictment on the operation of the refinery which many Nigerians had seen as the gamechanger with regards to the difficulty in the availability and price of petroleum products, had on Thursday said the 650,000 barrels per day Dangote refinery was neither completed nor licensed for operations.
Debunking earlier claims by Dangote that its operations were deliberately being frustrated by the International Oil Companies (IOCs) by refusing to sell crude to them, Ahmed, who spoke to State House Correspondents, at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, dismissing the allegation as untrue, disclosed that the products from the refinery were inferior to those currently being imported into the country, besides accusing the company of angling to monopolise the industry.
But pushing back again, Dangote, practically tested the products from his company before the delegation, using diesel bought from two filling stations on their way to the refinery located at the Lekki Free Trade Zone in Lagos, with the company’s samples taken from production also in the presence of the lawmakers.
Channels Television, confirmed that two tests were conducted, one for sulphur level and another a flash test, adding that while all crude-based products contain some level of sulphur, high sulphur levels cause damage to engines and vehicle components.
In the end, according to the report, the results showed that the sulphur content in the diesel from other stations was above 2,631 and 1,829; much higher than the recommended level while the tests for the flash point, which refers to the lowest temperature at which the application of the ignition source causes the vapours above the liquid to ignite with the minimum expected flash point at 66, showed results of 26 and 63 respectively for the diesel from other stations. Both results fell short of the recommended minimum of 66.
Commenting on the outcome, Dangote noted that the result, which turned out to be 87.6 ppm for sulphur and 96 flashpoints, did not only show the reality of products from his refinery, but the substandard petroleum products are being imported into the country and sold to unsuspecting Nigerians.
Dangote, who decried the damage being done to vehicles and engines by substandard products, called on the lawmakers to investigate the quality of diesel and petrol at filling stations, urging them to set up a committee to test products at various filling stations across the country, as well as the quality of laboratories being used to test imported products and compare them with the one at his refinery.
Also debunking allegations of monopoly as totally unfounded, he said: “If you look at all our operations at Dangote (Group), we add value. We take local raw materials and turn them into products, and we sell. We have never consciously or unconsciously stop anybody from doing the same business that we are doing.
“When we first came into cement production, it was only Lafarge that was operating here in Nigeria…Nobody ever called Lafarge a monopoly. Monopoly is when you stop people, you block them through legal means. No, it is a level playing field whereby whatever Dangote was given in cement, for example, other people were given because some of them even got more than us.”
In fact, the billionaire business tycoon maintained that his refinery did not enjoy any incentive from the Federal Government, adding: “In the refinery, we did not, and I repeat, we did not collect one single incentive from the Federal Government of Nigeria or even Lagos State. Yes, the Lagos State gave us a good deal but we paid $100m for the land. It wasn’t a free land; we paid for it. Majority of the population are with us. So, we are not discouraged, we will continue what we are doing.
“The most important thing, your excellency, is to note that the imported one they are encouraging, is the spec in test, but in certain cases when you check (independently), different results will show. This is because those people who have the lab have been told what to write. The best way to determine the quality of products being imported and sold to Nigerians is by going to the filling stations, buying and testing them.
Abbas, while acknowledging that by the presentation and the contradictory claims, there was a need for an investigation, told his host: “I don’t know how we have this contradiction of two players representing the public and private sector. I think it is something we need to investigate further to find out if there are ulterior motives.”