The newly commissioned Dangote Petroleum Refinery in Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos, will save the country between $25 billion and $30 billion in forex annually and give the economy an inflow of $10 billion yearly.
The Central Bank governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele disclosed this in a remark at the launch of the refinery on Monday.
Emefiele also announced that the refinery will generate 12000 megawatts of electricity and provide direct jobs for 135000 people.
President Muhammadu Buhari who inaugurated the refinery, which is currently the world’s largest single-train petroleum refiner, said his administration had been deliberate about ensuring public-private partnerships.
He described the refinery as a milestone for the Nigerian economy and a game-changer for the downstream petroleum market in the African continent.
“This clearly makes this event a notable milestone for our economy and a game-changer for the downstream petroleum products market, not only in Nigeria, but the entire African continent,”
“Our government, therefore, took the decision to focus attention on creating an enabling environment for the private sector to thrive and fill the enormous depth in investments not only in infrastructure, but also in all critical sectors,” Buhari said.
“We recognise that without active participation of the private sector and a strong commitment to public private partnership, our economy will continue to remain severely challenged.
“Government, therefore, will and should continue to provide an enabling environment and encourage innovative public private partnership in all sectors of our economy.”
Expectedly, the state-of-the-art refinery will not only make the country self-sufficient in refined products but also position Nigeria as a potential exporter of the products.
