The Dangote Petroleum Refinery, located in the Lekki Free Trade Zone near Lagos, has reached its full operational capacity of 650,000 barrels of crude oil per day, marking a major milestone for Africa’s largest refinery and one of the biggest single-train refineries in the world.

According to company officials, the achievement follows the successful optimization of key processing units, including the Crude Distillation Unit (CDU) and the gasoline production block. After a series of technical adjustments and performance tests, the facility is now operating at its designed throughput.

The refinery’s management conducted intensive 72-hour performance tests to ensure that all systems meet international operational standards. The stabilization of the main production units signals that the complex is now running at its nominal capacity.

With this development, the refinery is expected to significantly strengthen Nigeria’s energy security. At full capacity, it can produce up to 75 million litres of petrol per day, reducing the country’s reliance on imported refined petroleum products and easing pressure on foreign exchange reserves.

The $20 billion industrial complex represents one of the largest private investments in Africa’s energy sector. Analysts believe that the refinery’s full-scale operation could reshape Nigeria’s downstream petroleum industry, create jobs, and position the country as a key supplier of refined products across West Africa.

As operations stabilize at full capacity, the Dangote Refinery is set to play a strategic role in redefining Nigeria’s place in the African and global oil markets.