Billionaire businessman Femi Otedola has thrown his weight behind the Dangote Refinery, describing the project as a defining milestone for Nigeria’s energy independence and warning that depot-based fuel distribution is now outdated.
In a statement on the state of Nigeria’s downstream sector, Otedola said the operations of the 650,000 barrels per day Dangote Refinery have rendered the old model of fuel imports and storage depots irrelevant.
He maintained that the era of profiting from inefficient infrastructure and subsidy exploitation has ended.
“I founded the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN) in 2002 to challenge major marketers and close supply gaps in an import-driven market. But times have changed. With Dangote Refinery supplying fuel locally, the depot model is obsolete. Those clinging to it risk bankruptcy,” Otedola stated.
He noted that Nigeria’s storage capacity now exceeds 4 million metric tons, much of which lies idle, while Dangote has invested in modern logistics with 8,000 CNG-powered trucks to distribute fuel nationwide.
According to him, this shift not only improves supply efficiency but also eliminates the chronic gridlock around Apapa and Tin Can caused by depot operations.
Otedola further dismissed claims that depots contribute significantly to employment. “A depot employs barely five people, while a filling station provides jobs to dozens. If DAPPMAN members are serious about the future, they should invest in retail outlets or participate in refining operations,” he argued.
The billionaire praised Aliko Dangote for his role in reshaping the downstream sector, likening the refinery’s impact to Nigeria’s cement industry transformation, where imports collapsed once local production met demand.
He also credited President Bola Tinubu’s deregulation policy for breaking entrenched interests in the downstream sector.
According to him, subsidy fraud, rent-seeking, and arbitrage—which cost the country trillions of naira in the past—are now being dismantled by reforms that prioritise transparency and competition.
“Aliko’s refinery is not the problem, it is the solution. The sooner stakeholders accept this reality, the faster Nigeria can consolidate its refining revolution,” Otedola added.
Industry observers say Otedola’s remarks underscore the widening divide between traditional depot owners and the emerging refinery-driven market structure, where efficiency, local production, and cost transparency will dominate.
