Dangote Petroleum Refinery announces expansion to increase capacity from 650,000 to 1.4 million barrels per day, aiming completion within three years

Dangote Petroleum Refinery has launched an ambitious expansion programme to increase its capacity from 650,000 barrels per day to 1.4 million barrels within three years, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, David Bird, announced on Wednesday during a media briefing in Lagos.

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Bird said the expansion would employ a “roofless replication” approach, duplicating existing infrastructure to accelerate delivery without modifying core engineering designs.

“Once engineers start tinkering with designs, projects return to prolonged engineering stages. Our approach avoids that. We will not re-engineer or redesign.

This allows us to move directly into procurement and construction,” he said.

Preparatory work at the Lekki site, including land reclamation and pre-investment, has already been carried out, Bird added, reinforcing confidence that the project would meet its three-year timeline.

Procurement of long-lead items is set to begin immediately, with site preparation and piling works scheduled before the end of January 2026. Steelwork for the expansion is expected to commence later this year.

Bird highlighted the refinery’s operational flexibility, noting it imports all its crude feedstock by sea, enabling it to process Nigerian grades, alternative crudes, and intermediate feedstocks.

He described the refinery’s advanced conversion units as “moneymakers” that guarantee production of high-quality fuels meeting market specifications.

Despite not operating at full capacity, the refinery maintained reliable output, supplying over 50 million litres of Premium Motor Spirit daily during the festive season.

Current PMS production ranges between 50 and 52 million litres daily, with average truck-out volumes of about 50 million litres.

On government policy, Bird confirmed ongoing discussions with NNPC Ltd. to increase crude supply under the naira-for-crude arrangement, urging stronger implementation by authorities and regulators.

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The expansion programme underscores Dangote Refinery’s commitment to boosting domestic refining capacity, strengthening energy security, and deepening local technical expertise through workforce development.