For decades, Nigeria’s three major refineries have been grounded to near-zero capacity utilisation with all of its refined fuel imported from other countries. According to Guardian, data obtained from the African Refiners & Distributors Association (ARA) revealed that strong refinery performance in neighbouring Niger Republic meets local fuel demand, and the excess production is exported to Nigeria, Mali and Burkina Faso.
As Nigeria struggles to get its refineries working and to attract foreign investment to the downstream sector of the oil industry, Niger has built a single 20,000-barrel per day refinery with configuration for local market. The facility is currently turning out liquefied petroleum gas, 7 per cent; gasoline, 32 per cent; and diesel, 61 per cent, to enable it optimise stranded crude supply.
Niger built its refineries in less than three years, pushing utilisation from zero to about 90 per cent in 2019.
