Business a.m.
The Concerned Nigerian Consumers Forum (CNCF), has urged the federal government and the Department of State Services (DSS) to step in quickly to forestall a looming confrontation between the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) and the $20 billion Dangote Petroleum Refinery.
The civil society group, in a statement signed by its president, Olabisi Taiwo, and secretary, Akani Alikor, accused the oil workers’ union of what it described as desperate attempts to undermine the country’s most ambitious energy project, warning that any disruption could plunge Nigeria back into fuel scarcity and economic instability.
The Dangote Refinery, located in Lagos, is touted as the world’s largest single-train refinery, with a nameplate capacity of 650,000 barrels per day. It is designed to end decades of reliance on imported petroleum products, stabilise pump prices, and create thousands of direct and indirect jobs.
While still ramping up operations, the refinery has become central to Nigeria’s energy security narrative. For many Nigerians, it represents a long-awaited break from the cycle of fuel shortages, subsidy costs, and foreign exchange pressures tied to imports.
But PENGASSAN has threatened to picket the facility over alleged mass layoffs, accusing the management of anti-labour practices. The Dangote Group, however, insists that recent organisational changes were necessary to protect operations following acts of sabotage, and that the refinery remains one of the country’s largest private employers, with over 3,000 Nigerians on its payroll.
The CNCF drew contrasts between the Dangote project and Nigeria’s moribund public refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna. It blamed unions such as PENGASSAN and NUPENG for resisting reforms and blocking privatisation efforts that could have rescued the state-owned facilities.
“They resisted reforms, blocked privatization, and crippled fuel supply with strikes. Their actions contributed to the rot that turned these refineries into relics of corruption and mismanagement,” the group stated.
“History must not repeat itself. We cannot afford to see the Dangote Refinery, a private sector initiative built at enormous cost, go the way of government refineries that were crippled by strikes, sabotage, and mismanagement,” it added.
The group also criticised PENGASSAN’s decision to push ahead with industrial action despite an existing court injunction, describing it as union overreach and a test of the rule of law. It warned that a failure to curb what it termed industrial blackmail could embolden other groups to target national assets.
“Who benefits if the refinery fails? Not ordinary Nigerians, but fuel importers and rent-seekers who profit from chaos,” the statement read.
The CNCF urged the Ministries of Labour, Petroleum Resources, and Justice to intervene, adding that safeguarding the refinery was a matter of national security and consumer welfare.
“The Dangote Refinery is not just another private venture; it is a cornerstone of Nigeria’s quest for energy independence. Nigerians have suffered enough from fuel queues and economic hardship. This refinery must not be held hostage to narrow interests,” the CNCF argued.
