CEO of Dangote Group Aliko Dangote has revealed that Nigeria’s downstream sector is set to face a “shakeup” in the coming months, according to BusinessDay.

The oil magnate revealed the plans following President Bola Tinubu’s tour of his 650,000 barrel per day (bpd) Dangote refinery located in the Lekki Free Zone and added that a “significant announcement” was currently in the works.

Dangote noted that the plans would not involve cutting the prices of fuel but a total restructuring of Nigeria’s downstream industry.

“Now that the President has visited and boosted our momentum, expect to hear from us very soon,” he said, adding: “It’s going to be one of the biggest changes in the country – not a price cut, but a full-scale overhaul”.

Dangote continued to say that Tinubu had not yet seen everything: “Come back in five years, and the refinery will be just one part of a much bigger picture,” he remarked.

Moreover, the CEO also highlighted that the refinery would soon be listed on the stock exchange, with the fertiliser unit being the first part of the plant expected to be added.

While alluding to large-sale changes in the industry, Dangote praised Tinubu’s economic reforms – underscoring their success in creating a more positive atmosphere for industrial development and long-term investment. He also praised Tinubu’s “Nigeria First Policy” – which prioritises domestic production and self-sufficiency, a key element of Dangote Group’s goal to reduce Nigeria’s reliance on foreign fuel imports.

Other projects set to benefit the Nigerian downstream sector include the federal government’s plans to improve infrastructure – such as the Nigerian Road Infrastructure Development Fund and Investment Tax Credit Scheme. With these in place, eight new roads have since been commissioned at the cost of $582mn.

Concluding his speech, Dangote underscored the refinery’s position as a strategic project that has been designed to support the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda – a policy that will help the country become a manufacturing centre in the West African region.