Africa’s largest refinery invited to explore crude within one of Nigeria’s new oil frontiers

Africa’s largest oil refiner, Dangote Oil Refinery, has been invited to come source crude from within its country to boost production.

• Dangote Oil Refinery has been invited by Niger State to source crude from the local Bida Basin to boost oil production.
• The state government is promoting a 'One-Stop-Shop' investment model with minimal government equity, using a Joint Venture–Public Private Partnership framework.
• Dangote Group is praised for its industrialization initiatives and its role as a strategic partner in Niger State, with ongoing rice processing operations in Wushishi.
• The Niger State government, through pro-investor policies, aims to stimulate economic and industrial growth in the region.

Authorities from Niger, one of the country’s northern states, have invited the Dangote Refinery, alongside other private investors, to look into the exploration of an oil basin called the Bida Basin.

During a fireside session on Dangote Special Day at the Niger National Trade Fair in Minna, Aminu Takuma, the Commissioner for Trade, Investment, Industry, and Private Sector Development, disclosed that Niger State is engaging with private sector entities through a "One-Stop-Shop" investment model to facilitate the development of its crude oil resources.

A statement issued by the Dangote Group on Sunday indicates that the state government intends to maintain a minimal equity stake in the venture, utilizing a Joint Venture–Public Private Partnership framework.

Furthermore, as seen in the Punch newspaper, the Commissioner lauded the Dangote Group for its significant industrialization initiatives and the establishment of the world's largest single-train refinery.

Fatima Wali Abdurrahman, Regional Director and Senior Advisor to Aliko Dangote, highlighted the Dangote Group's existing rice processing operations in Wushishi as evidence of the organization's status as a strategic partner to Niger State.

She expressed appreciation for Governor Umaru Bago's implementation of investor-oriented policies designed to stimulate industrial and economic growth within the state.

Furthermore, she affirmed that the Dangote Group remains committed to the preservation and expansion of its collaborative relationship with the Niger State Government.

Oil exploration in Northern Nigeria

While Nigeria’s oil is typically drilled from its southern region, in May last year, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) announced plans to resume crude oil drilling in northern Nigeria.

In 2019, the NNPC announced the discovery of hydrocarbon reserves at the Kolmani River II Well in the Upper Benue Trough of the Gongola Basin in the country's northeast.

This was the first big oil discovery in Northern Nigeria, laying the groundwork for the Kolmani Integrated Development Project, a strategic attempt to maximize the region's hydrocarbon potential.

By 2022, the government had begun commercial oil drilling in the area.

Authorities stated that the initiative was planned to attract foreign investment and create jobs in local areas.