Dangote Refinery will create over 70,000 jobs-CBN

Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr Godwin Emefiele, has expressed optimism about a reduction in the high rate of unemployment in the country, stating that Dangote Refinery alone will employ more than 70,000 able Nigerians when it becomes operational.

He said the various policies of the Federal Government will ultimately reduce unemployment in the country.

The apex bank governor, who spoke to the press after the tour of the Refinery over the weekend, said the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Plant is expected to increase the number of employees from the present 34,000 to over 70,000 when it becomes operational.

In the same vein, Aliko Dangote, said he is on a mission to aggressively reduce the unemployment rate in the country.

Apart from job creation, the plant will also retain foreign exchange in Nigeria, as the country becomes self-sufficient in petroleum refining.

“Besides, we are going to help in terms of not only creating jobs but also in reducing the outflow of foreign exchange not only in petroleum products but also in petrochemicals, and in fertilizers. We would be one of the highest foreign exchange generating company going forward”, Dangote added.

Dangote says its $2 billion Granulated Urea Fertiliser plant located at Ibeju Lekki, Lagos will begin operations in May.

He said the Fertiliser Plant would make Nigeria the only Urea exporting country in Sub-Saharan Africa, and the biggest producer of polyethene, which is capable of generating $2.5 billion annually.

He said: “Nigeria will soon become the biggest and only urea exporter in sub-Saharan Africa for the first time. And we are not only exporting, but we would also be exporting big time.

“We are also going to have polyethylene which is about 1.3 million tonnes annually. These two products would bring in something like about $2.5 billion annually in terms of foreign exchange. A lot of Forex would now come in and that $2.5 billion is only about 10 per cent of remittances.

Dangote said a pre-testing of the fertiliser plant has already begun, adding that the project would be the largest fertiliser plant in the world with its three million tonnes per annum capacity.

According to him, the refinery project which is 48 per cent completed will make Nigeria the largest exporter of petroleum product in Africa.He said the size of the project necessitated the need for the company to construct a jetty to take care of the over-dimensional cargoes. “It is a huge project and that is why we have built a jetty and the pipeline through which we are bringing in the crude”, he said.