Lagos – The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) at the weekend described the coming of Dangote Oil Refining and Petrochemicals as a looming economic transformation of the downstream sector of the petroleum industry in the country.

Besides, the Chamber also said the economic benefits of the oil refinery, when completed would have far reaching positive effects on the lives of Nigeria and her people. 

Speaking after leading members of the chambers on a tour of Dangote Jetty, Refinery and Fertiliser plants in Lagos, Mr. Babatunde Ruwase, President of the LCCI, said the project was massive and the impact on the petroleum sector would be too spectacular.

He expressed excitement over the pace of work at the Refinery and Fertiliser plants, which he described as a game changer for the Nigeria oil sector.

He commended Alhaji Aliko Dangote, the President of Dangote Group for the enormous investment in Africa, saying, Dangote’s patriotism remained unparalleled when it comes to investment among entrepreneurs in the country.

Ruwase noted that his investments in many sectors had been a major factor behind Nigeria’s improving economy. 

“Dangote is doing so much to positively impact the lives of Nigerians through the production of household products,” he said. 

He explained that the world was waiting for Dangote Oil Refinery project to bail Nigeria out from the clutches of importation of petroleum products.

While commending the company for building a jetty to carter for the movement of heavy equipment to the refinery site, the LCCI President said: “This will greatly reduce the congestion at Apapa port and also help to cut down traffic on the Apapa road”

He, however, appealed to other investors to thread the pact of Dangote by investing heavily in the Nigerian economy.

Speaking on the progress made so far, Rama Rao Putta, Head, Quality Assurance/Quality Control, Dangote Oil Refinery Company Limited, said the Company had the capacity to process 650,000 barrels per day of crude oil.

He said the refinery would lead to the protection of forex revenue of around $16bn a year at current market prices and saving of $10bn a year through domestic supplies of petroleum products.

Putta said that the refinery would create 100,000 indirect employments through retail outlets and ease availability of petroleum products in the country.

He noted that the company had completed the training of the first and second batches of Nigerian engineers in India and that the employees were being acclimatised at site.

Also speaking also at the event, Anurag Jaiswal, General Manager of Dangote Fertiliser Limited, described Dangote Fertiliser project as the largest granulated urea fertiliser complex coming up in the entire industry.