Mele Kyari, the Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Group, stated that he does not own a blending plant in Malta. He also mentioned that he is not aware of any employees of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited who have such a facility in Malta, a country in Europe.
In a post made on Tuesday on X (formerly Twitter), Kyari addressed the President of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, asking him to publicly identify any NNPC personnel involved in running a blending plant in Malta.
Kyari explained that he has been receiving numerous inquiries from family members, friends, and associates about Dangote’s public claim. Dangote had stated that some NNPC workers had set up a blending plant in Malta, which he claimed was hampering local production of petroleum products.
Dangote, who is Africa’s richest man and owns a $20 billion refinery in Lagos, had made these statements over the weekend. He accused some NNPC personnel and oil traders of operating a blending plant in Malta, which he said was affecting the quality of petroleum products produced locally. Regulatory authorities had also questioned the quality of the products from Dangote’s refinery located in the Lekki Free Trade Zone.
Dangote emphasized that the products from his refinery were of higher quality than those imported by other marketers. He pointed out that bad fuel imported into the country had damaged many cars, urging people to check the quality at filling stations to verify his claims.
He insisted, “We know where they blend these things. Some of the NNPC people and some traders have opened a blending plant somewhere off Malta. We all know these areas. We know what they are doing.”
In his response on Tuesday, Kyari clarified, “I do not own or operate any business, directly or by proxy, anywhere in the world, except for a local mini Agric venture. I am also unaware of any NNPC employees owning or operating a blending plant in Malta or anywhere else.”
He added that a blending plant in Malta or elsewhere does not affect NNPC’s business operations or strategic decisions. He assured that if any NNPC employee is found to be involved in such activities, they would face sanctions according to the compliance rules of NNPC. He recommended that any individuals involved should be publicly identified and reported to relevant government security agencies for appropriate actions, given the serious implications for national energy security.
Dangote’s massive refinery in Lagos, which started operations last December, processes 350,000 barrels of crude oil a day. It aims to reach its full capacity of 650,000 barrels per day by the end of the year. The refinery has already begun supplying diesel and aviation fuel to local marketers, with petrol supply expected to start in August, despite regulatory challenges.
