Trump excited with Dangote Refinery, says Aliko

By Seyi Babalola

Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote, President of the Dangote Group, has stated that Donald Trump is “more than happy” with the Dangote Refinery’s operations.

Dangote refuted reports of US opposition, stating that far from being a rival, the United States is actually a major supplier of crude oil to the plant, making it a vital beneficiary due to the considerable magnitude of the company involved.

Speaking on Sunday during a press briefing at the Dangote Petroleum Refinery in Lekki, Lagos State, he also said his refinery continues to rely on crude oil imports from Ghana and other countries due to insufficient domestic supply.

Dangote stated that Nigeria is yet to produce enough crude oil to meet its needs, forcing the country to source supplies from neighbouring African nations and the United States.

“We are not getting enough crude, so that’s why we buy from Ghana and a few other African countries. We also buy from the U.S.,” he said.

Dangote described the United States as one of Nigeria’s major crude oil suppliers and dismissed claims that U.S. President Donald Trump is unhappy with the operations of the Dangote Refinery or related funding arrangements.

According to him, the U.S. is a major beneficiary of the trade relationship, as Nigeria imports large volumes of crude oil from the country.

“The U.S. has been one of our major suppliers of crude, which is why when someone says Trump is not happy with our refinery, it’s not true. Trump is more than happy with our refinery because of the scale of business involved,” Dangote said.