Oil: Dangote warns of Russian competition in Africa

Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote is sounding the alarm: the massive influx of cheap Russian fuels threatens efforts to develop a local refining industry in Africa. During an oil forum in Abuja, he denounced the growing arrival of products that often do not comply with international standards, dumped at knockdown prices on the continent.

The culprit is Western sanctions against Moscow, which are forcing Russia to shift its fuels to alternative markets. As a result, Africa, still 60% dependent on imported petroleum products, is becoming a *target for dumping, particularly via offshore hubs such as the *floating terminal in Lomé, Togo.The Dangote refinery, Africa’s largest (650,000 barrels/day, soon to be 700,000), is struggling to find Nigerian crude oil to refine and faces fierce competition from international traders with few regulatory constraints.

Since June, Dangote has already exported one million tons of gasoline, but the market remains dominated by external players. To defend local production, it is calling for customs duties, stricter quality controls, and continental regulatory harmonization, similar to European and North American practices.

Despite these tensions, Africa remains a secondary market for Russian diesel (700,000 tons in June). But for Dangote, the threat is clear: without protection, the African refining industry risks suffocation.

source: africa news