Africa’s biggest private refinery has been thrown into turmoil. On Thursday, September 25, the $20 billion Dangote Petroleum Refinery & Petrochemicals fired an undisclosed number of workers in what insiders say is the most sweeping shake-up since its inauguration.
Management described the move as “a total reorganization” after uncovering what it called repeated acts of sabotage inside key refinery units — breaches that raised red flags over worker safety and facility integrity.
In an internal memo obtained by our correspondent, Femi Adekunle, Chief General Manager of Human Asset Management at Dangote Group, said the refinery had “no choice but to disengage” the affected employees.
“All staff are expected to surrender company property and obtain clearance certificates,” the memo stated, while directing the finance department to process entitlements for those laid off.
The development comes as the refinery faces mounting pressure from Nigeria’s two powerful oil unions — PENGASSAN and NUPENG. Both have accused the refinery of blocking unionization efforts and threatened to cripple operations if the deadlock continues.
Union leaders argue that Dangote’s refusal to allow tanker drivers and other employees to unionize violates fundamental labor rights. “Diplomatic channels have failed,” PENGASSAN warned, insisting it may have no option but to “join NUPENG in shutting down the refinery.”
The refinery, commissioned in May 2023 in Lekki, Lagos, is designed to process 650,000 barrels of crude per day — making it the world’s largest single-train facility. Its success is seen as critical to ending Nigeria’s reliance on imported petroleum products.
But Thursday’s purge has raised new questions: Is this the refinery stamping its authority — or the start of a deeper crisis pitting Africa’s most ambitious industrial project against its own workforce?