Strategic collaboration between the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) and Dangote Petroleum Refinery & Petrochemicals has the potential to redefine Nigeria’s energy security, deepen industrialisation and create enduring national value across the upstream, gas and power, and downstream value chains.

The Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Limited, Bashir Bayo Ojulari, disclosed this on Saturday, February 21, 2026, during a visit by the NNPC leadership to the refinery and Dangote Fertilisers Limited in Lagos.

Ojulari said Nigerians should be grateful for the vision and leadership that made the 650,000 barrels per day refinery a reality, describing it as a bold demonstration of Nigeria’s industrial capability.

“Individually, both organisations command scale, capital and execution capability,” he said. “Collectively, we have the potential to redefine Nigeria’s energy security, deepen industrialisation and create enduring national value across the upstream, gas and power, and downstream chains.”

He described Dangote Group and NNPC Limited as two of Nigeria’s most strategically significant national champions and said the immediate focus would be to define concrete areas of collaboration and align on next steps ahead of further executive engagements.

Reiterating NNPC’s commitment to reform, Ojulari stressed that collaboration does not imply compromise.

“Collaboration does not mean mediocrity. It means disciplined alignment around shared value creation,” he said.

He described the refinery as a source of national pride and an example of Nigeria’s ability to leapfrog legacy industrial constraints through the adoption of best in class global technology.

Commending its operational performance, Ojulari said the plant had exceeded expectations.

“This plant was designed for 650,000 barrels per day. None of us thought it would even touch 550,000. What we saw live today was 661,000. These are live parameters, not reports or photographs,” he stated.

Responding, President of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, said a deeper strategic partnership with NNPC Limited could anchor Africa’s next phase of industrial transformation.

He described the partnership as central to the refinery’s founding vision.

“I cannot thank you and your team enough. This was our dream before it (refinery) became a reality,” Dangote said. “The partnership between ourselves and NNPC will not only strengthen Nigeria but can also revolutionise the African market.”

Dangote noted that NNPC currently holds a 7.25 per cent equity stake in the refinery on behalf of Nigerians and said expanding collaboration within the existing industrial complex would unlock stronger value.

“With the new leadership, I believe the sky is the limit. We will cooperate, work together, and make Nigerians proud,” he said.

He described the refinery as “an industrial hub, not just a refinery,” highlighting opportunities across petrochemicals, fertiliser, and related downstream industries.

Emphasising that the future of refining extends beyond fuel production, Dangote said petrochemicals represent higher value creation opportunities.

“You do not just build a refinery. You build petrochemicals, because that is where the value lies,” he said, citing products such as Linear Alkyl Benzene used in detergent manufacturing.

He disclosed that the refinery’s expansion plans include a 400,000 metric tonne Linear Alkyl Benzene facility, a scale expected to surpass current African production capacity. Both parties, he added, would identify priority areas of collaboration within weeks, and move toward structured implementation.

Dangote maintained that Nigeria could unlock significantly greater economic value by prioritising domestic processing of resources rather than exporting raw materials, adding that investments in fertiliser, petrochemicals and base oil would strengthen foreign exchange earnings and deepen the country’s industrial base.