Nigeria Will Become Africa’s Biggest Oil Refining Hub by 2025– Report

A leading research firm, Hawilti Limited has projected that Nigeria will emerge as Africa’s biggest crude oil refining hub by 2025.

This was contained in its report released on Monday based on its most recent research on African refineries with the continent’s outlook for 2023.

Investors King understands that Hawilti Ltd is a pan-African investment research agency and advisor to businesses, investors, public and private institutions, as well as governments across Africa with the goal of building a transparent and vibrant continent through its unique research and contents.

According to its report, the Dangote Refinery of 650,000 barrels per day capacity and the rehabilitation of Warri, Port Harcourt and Kaduna refineries with a total refining capacity of 445,000 barrels per day will make Nigeria top the list by 2025.

On the West Africa region’s progress in crude oil refining, the report pointed out its positive outlook and growth as its capacity increased in 2023.

It added that the West Africa region now has the largest refining capacity in sub-Saharan Africa of which its operation is presently at 23 percent.

“Both the opening of the Dangote Refinery and the rehabilitation of state-owned refineries have the potential to make Nigeria Africa’s biggest refining hub by 2025.

“The long-awaited Dangote Refinery, a 650,000 barrels per day single-train crude refining facility that has been a decade in the making, is finally expected to start production this year. Its commissioning is already sending hopes that it could finally start rebalancing Nigeria’s trade deficit.

“Tecnimont continues to make progress on bringing Port Harcourt’s complex back to 90 per cent of its capacity while Daewoo E&C was selected in 2022 to execute two ‘quick fix’ projects at both Warri and Kaduna,” says the report.

Hawilti, however, kicked against Nigeria’s importation of petroleum products and petrol subsidy as its refineries are under construction.

It urged Dangote Refinery to reduce imports, increase its currency savings, fight inflation, and enhance its macroeconomic outlook.