Nigeria’s Dangote refinery has moved to deny a Reuters report that claimed the plant was preparing to shut its petrol unit for between two to three months, with Dangote Group spokesperson Anthony Chiejina denouncing it as “fake,” according to The Punch.

The report in question – released by Reuters on September 4 – quoted industry monitor IIR Energy, which said that the 650,000 barrel per day (bpd) plant could potentially shut for two to three months for repairs.

“The unit has been shut since around August 29 after catalyst leaks,” IIR said, adding: “The refinery plans to attempt to restart the 204,000 bpd Residue Fluidized Catalytic Cracking Unit (RFCCU) on September 20, but major repairs and equipment replacement could keep the unit shut for months.”

In his response, Chiejina underscored that the report was “fake news,” adding: “Why ‘could’ if they are sure?”

Dangote refinery has been aiming to increase its capacity to 700,000 bpd by December this year, although issues sourcing feedstock domestically have proved a constant problem – as well as maintenance involving the plant’s residual fluid catalytic cracker, which continues to sit in the spotlight as repairs drag on.

With this, the plant has started to source crude from abroad, turning to Angolan Pazflor, Ghana’s Sankofa, Brazilian Mero and Tupi, and US light sweet crude to keep operations going, according to Kpler data. Indeed, the plant’s use of US crude saw it achieve a monthly record of 570,000 barrels per day in July, with around 60% of feedstock used shipped from the country.

Furthermore, the plant has since shipped two cargoes of petrol to the US’s East Coast, set to arrive in New York in late September. According to The Punch, industry observers are keen to see whether the refinery’s product will meet US standards.

Despite this, Nigerian production lags, with Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, noting that the country needed to ramp up production to meet local and international demands.