MODULAR REFINERIES BACK DANGOTE, SEEK TINUBU’S INTERVENTION.

Modular refineries, on Sunday, confirmed the concerns raised by Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, on the fact that some mafias in the oil sector were bent at stopping in-country refining of crude oil for the production of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, and other refined petroleum products.

Operators of modular refineries stated that they had raised this concern severally in the past but received no positive feedback, stressing that the Chairman of Dangote Petroleum Refinery just re-echoed it last week.

They spoke to our ATN correspondent through their umbrella association, Crude Oil Refinery Owners Association of Nigeria, while reacting to Dangote’s recent revelation on the matter.

ATN learnt that CORAN is a registered association of modular and conventional refinery companies in Nigeria. Modular refineries are simplified refineries that require significantly less capital investment than traditional full-scale refineries. The Publicity Secretary, CORAN, Eche Idoko, said, Dangote has raised similar concerns just as they’ve been saying all along about the mafias in the oil sector. These merchants have held the country hostage, especially in the area of our domestic petroleum products’ supply and it is crippling the whole economy.

ATN recalls that Last week, Dangote revealed that both local and international cartels, which he described as “mafia”, made repeated attempts to sabotage the $19bn Dangote Petroleum Refinery project located in Lagos.