Billionaire Femi Otedola recently visited the Dangote Refinery, praising it as the “8th wonder of the world”. The refinery is undergoing an expansion project that will increase its capacity to 1.4 million barrels per day, making it the largest refinery globally, surpassing India’s Jamnagar Refinery.

The expansion project, valued at $12 billion, is expected to be completed within three years and will create approximately 65,000 construction jobs, with 85% of the workforce comprising Nigerians. The refinery’s power generation capacity will also be doubled from 500 megawatts to 1,000 megawatts, and production standards will be upgraded from Euro 5 to Euro 6 specifications.

Otedola’s visit highlights the significance of the Dangote Refinery in Nigeria’s energy sector. The refinery has already reached its full capacity of 650,000 barrels per day and is expected to reduce Nigeria’s reliance on imported fuel, easing pressure on the foreign exchange market. Otedola predicts that the naira could strengthen to below ₦1,000/$1 before year-end due to the refinery’s impact on forex demand.