Editor’s Note
This article details a significant industrial partnership between Nigeria’s Dangote Group and U.S.-based Honeywell, aimed at dramatically expanding the capacity and capabilities of the Lekki refinery. The move underscores a major push to reshape Nigeria’s domestic refining landscape.
The Nigerian group Dangote has chosen the American company Honeywell to support the expansion of its Lekki refinery, with the goal of increasing its capacity to 1.4 million barrels per day by 2028. This partnership is expected to enable the plant to process more grades of crude oil and increase its production of polypropylene, confirming the industrial giant’s ambitions to sustainably transform the refining sector in Nigeria.
The Nigerian group Dangote has entrusted the American company Honeywell with the mission of supporting the massive increase in capacity of its Lekki refinery, with the goal of reaching 1.4 million barrels per day by 2028. The announcement, made on Tuesday by the two companies, confirms the industrial group’s ambition to elevate its complex to the status of the world’s largest refinery. According to initial information, Honeywell will provide specialized equipment and catalysts to enable the plant to process a wider range of crude oil types. This adaptation is considered essential to support the planned ramp-up over the next four years.
Dangote has also sought Honeywell’s Oleflex technology to increase its annual production of polypropylene, a material used notably in plastic packaging and the automotive industry. The stated goal is to reach 2.4 million metric tons per year. The financial terms of the agreement have not been made public, but a source close to the negotiations estimates the contract value at over $250 million.
Nigeria, although Africa’s top oil producer, has depended for decades on imports of refined fuels due to the dilapidated state of its public facilities. This situation has fueled recurrent shortages, burdened foreign exchange reserves, and fueled subsidy-related scandals. The Dangote refinery, which has partially commenced operations, is expected to put an end to this contradiction. With an initial capacity of 650,000 barrels per day, it is already the world’s largest single-train facility. The group recently presented a project for a second unit expected to double the total capacity and absorb almost all domestic crude production, estimated at about 1.5 million barrels per day.
The agreement comes as Honeywell, engaged in a restructuring aimed at separating its aerospace division, seeks to strengthen the stability of its industrial revenues before the completion of this split.
