The Vice President of Oil and Gas at Dangote Industries Limited, Devakumar Edwin, has disclosed that the company’s recent internal reorganization was triggered by 22 sabotage attempts aimed at disrupting operations.

He disclosed this on Friday during a media briefing at the Dangote Refinery in Lagos.

The company recently faced scrutiny as labour groups raised concerns over the alleged sacking of over 800 workers.

However, Edwin stated that protecting the integrity and long-term viability of Africa’s largest refinery project remained a top priority, and that all decisions were made to safeguard the company.

Edwin maintained that the decision to restructure had no connection to labour union pressures or actions, particularly from the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria.

“They said we have an issue with PENGASSAN; it is totally false news. When we had a meeting with the minister and security agents, I made it clear that we don’t have any issue with PENGASSAN. We started facing incidents of sabotage. We have 22 incidents of sabotage. You all must have seen fire incidents in some refineries.

“There were attempted fire incidents. We have the dates, the unit where it was done, and when it was done. All are documented with us. Because we went to the master control room, you know that all the data is completely captured there. And in the same way, they are trying to bring down the equipment.

“Fortunately for us, by the grace of God, it’s a very ultra-modern refinery. So, when somebody starts a fire somewhere, the fire protection system is so good, it is immediately controlled.”

The traditional ruler of Ibedaowei Ekpetiama Kingdom and Chairman, Bayelsa State Traditional Rulers Council, Bubaraye Dakolo, threw his weight behind the Dangote Refinery, hailing it as a long-overdue solution to Nigeria’s troubled downstream oil sector.

Speaking on behalf of the region, the monarch expressed satisfaction at seeing Nigerian crude finally being refined locally — a feat they believe has the potential to transform the nation’s economy and bring real benefits to both the Niger Delta and the country at large.

High petrol prices persist despite cheaper crude, stronger naira

“After years of watching our natural resources being exported and re-imported at great cost, we finally see hope through the Dangote Refinery. This is the first major step in correcting decades of distortion in the value chain of our oil and gas industry,” he added.

Dakolo emphasized that Nigeria stands to gain more economically and socially from refining its oil locally and exporting finished products, rather than relying on imports.

The Niger Delta leader called on the Federal, State, and Local Governments, as well as the organized private sector and trade unions, to support ongoing efforts to make Nigeria self-reliant in fuel production.

He urged cooperation, particularly from the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, reminding the union of a missed opportunity in 2007.

“Our refineries would have been working since 2007, when the Obasanjo administration sold a 51% stake in the Port Harcourt and Kaduna refineries to a consortium called Bluestar Oil, of which Aliko Dangote was the principal promoter.

“What happened? PENGASSAN went on strike over the sale, and as a direct consequence of that strike, the late President Yar’Adua cancelled the sale. For eighteen years, those refineries remained comatose after spending $18 billion.

“When you talk about a cabal in the oil sector ensuring that Nigerians keep paying unnecessarily high prices for oil and gas products, that cabal is the oil unions, PENGASSAN,” the monarch stated.

He added that the single decision had cost Nigeria 18 years of inaction and over $18bn in wasted refinery spending. “We must not repeat that mistake,” Dakolo appealed.

Highlighting the risks of sabotaging local refining efforts, he criticized ongoing narratives labelling the Dangote Refinery as a monopoly.

“Thirty licenses have been granted for refineries, including modular ones and BUA’s 200,000-barrel-per-day facility. The industry is open; the real issue is that some prefer the quick profits of importing fuel rather than the long-term investment in local production,” he said. (Saturday PUNCH, but headline rejigged)