Nigeria's Dangote eyes spot as world's lead refiner

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Nigeria’s Dangote refinery was once seen as an impossible project. Now, it’s vying to become the largest refinery in the world.

With a mandate to end Nigeria's fuel imports, this Lagos site already dwarfs the size of every refinery in Africa.

When it started up in 2024, it also became the largest refinery in history to rely on a single crude distillation unit – meaning one glitch in that column, and the whole system is offline.

But less than two years after the plant launched, we’re told Dangote 2.0 is already on its way.

By 2028, the company wants the capacity to process 1.4 million barrels of crude oil per day, more than double its current scale. 

The plan is to build an almost idententical production line with a second CDU -- reducing outage risks and boosting feedstock flexibility.

In theory, the groundwork is there. The company has asked Afreximbank for a $5 billion loan – a quarter of its initial cost – and it has tapped former partners EIL and Honeywell. It’s also looking at potential Middle Eastern funding and a 2026 IPO.

Let’s not forget, existing technical challenges and debts remain important concerns. But, if it comes off, this expansion could shake up the global refining market all over again.