Oil & Energy
Dangote Refinery Begins Installation Of Equipment
The Dangote Oil Refining Company has commenced the installation of equipment for the 650,000 barrels-per-day crude oil refinery being built in the Lekki area of Lagos.
To this effect, the company has taken delivery of one of the major components of its refinery equipment, the Regenerator for the Residual Fluid Catalytic Cracker (RFCC).
The Head of Quality Assurance/Quality Compliance and Construction, DORC) Mr Rama Putta made this known yesterday in Lagos.
The refinery has continued to receive heavy equipment, through the Dangote jetty, located close to the refinery in the Lekki Free Trade Zone.
It would be recalled that the jetty, constructed by Dangote Oil Refinery received its first ship of 132 metres long, 9,755 tonnes general cargo ship, last year to deliver essential equipment for the ongoing construction.
The refinery is being designed to accommodate multiple grades of domestic and foreign crude and process these into high-quality gasoline, diesel, kerosene, and aviation fuels that meet Euro V emissions specifications, plus polypropylene.
The Fluid Catalytic Cracking (FCC) is one of the most important conversion processes used in petroleum refineries.
Putta said the sand filling of the site had been completed, adding that 60 per cent of the land was swampy.
“The refinery equipment are coming in semi-finished shape and we will finish the assembling here at the sight.
“The remaining is being manufactured in various countries, including China, India, America, South Korea, Singapore and Malaysia,’’ he said. Executive Director, Dangote Group, Mr Devakumar Edwin said the 650,000 barrels per day refinery would stimulate economic development in Nigeria. He said the refinery was designed to process a variety of light and medium grades of crude and produce extremely clean fuels that met Euro V specification.
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The Niger Delta Power Holding Company Limited (NDPHC) has commenced a major electricity project aimed at ending a 15-year blackout in Rigasa community, Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State.
The General Manager, Corporate Communication and External Relations, NDPHC, Nazo Agim, made this known in a statement, in Abuja, at the weekend.
Agim said that the project, facilitated by the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Ideological Group (BAT-IG), comprises a two-kilometre 11kV line, a 1.5-kilometre 33kV line and a 7.5MVA, 33/11kV injection substation.Access Services
According to him, the project is designed to strengthen electricity distribution and improve power supply to residents and businesses in the community.
He said that the Rigasa project underscored NDPHC’s commitment to extending critical electricity infrastructure beyond generation to bridge distribution gaps.
He also said that the project would stimulate socioeconomic development and improve the quality of life in underserved communities across Nigeria.
Agim disclosed that a groundbreaking ceremony was performed earlier on Friday, by the Kaduna state Deputy Governor, Dr. Hadiza Balarabe, who represented Governor Uba Sani.
According to him, Balarabe, while speaking during the ceremony commended NDPHC for the intervention, describing it as a life-saving initiative that would address the community’s longstanding electricity challenges.
The NDPHC Managing Director, Jennifer Adighije, reaffirmed the company’s commitment to addressing the community’s electricity challenges.
Represented by the Executive Director, Networks, Babayo Bello, Adighije also reiterated NDPHC’s commitment to supporting President Bola Tinubu’s vision of improving electricity supply across the country.
She said that although NDPHC’s primary mandate was power generation, the company’s interventions also extended to transmission and distribution infrastructure to address critical gaps and expand electricity access.
According to her, the Rigasa project represents a worthwhile investment that will ease residents’ hardship and demonstrate the impact of targeted infrastructure development in underserved communities.Access Services
NDPHC Executive Director, Strategy and Commercial, Patrick Obahiagbon, commended the Kaduna state government and the community for their cooperation and support for the project.
The District Head of Rigasa, Mohammed Idris, also commended NDPHC’s management for its commitment to expanding electricity access in the community.
As the federal government intensifies efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s power infrastructure, it has commissioned 640 megawatts (MW) of electricity transmission capacity to the national grid with an additional six transmission substations in Kano and Katsina states, respectively.
The projects comprise four substations at Walalambe, Kumbotso, Dakata and Dan-Agundi in Kano State, which collectively add 544MW of transmission capacity, and two 60 megavolt amperes (MVA) substations in Kankia Local Government Area of Katsina State, contributing another 96MW.
The additional capacity is expected to improve the transmission network’s ability to evacuate and deliver available electricity to distribution companies and consumers in the two states.
The Ministry of Power announced the developments in a statement issued at the weekend.
According to the statement, the additional capacity is expected to improve the transmission network’s ability to evacuate and deliver available electricity to distribution companies and consumers in the two states.
The projects, however, increase transmission capacity rather than electricity generation, implying that their impact on supply would depend partly on the availability of power from generating plants and the capacity of downstream distribution networks.
Speaking at the commissioning of the Kankia substation, the Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, said the projects reflected President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to improving the country’s electricity infrastructure.
“Mr. President’s Renewed Hope Agenda recognizes that economic ambition requires dependable infrastructure,” Tegbe said.
He added that investments in electricity infrastructure would strengthen the foundations for business expansion, employment and economic growth.
The Kankia substations comprise two 60 MVA, 132/33 kilovolt (kV) facilities designed to strengthen the transmission network serving Katsina State and neighbouring areas.
Tegbe said the infrastructure would improve the network’s ability to distribute available electricity, supporting commercial activities and household welfare.
He also urged residents to protect the facilities against vandalism and other activities that could disrupt electricity infrastructure, asking them to report suspicious activities to TCN or security agencies.
Katsina State Governor, Dikko Umaru Radda, described the project as a significant investment in the state’s electricity infrastructure.
Radda stated that improved electricity supply could support industrial development, economic growth and public service delivery.
He further commended the President, the Federal Ministry of Power and TCN for completing the project.
It would be noted that the latest projects come amid a broader government’s drive to address bottlenecks in Nigeria’s electricity transmission network, which has constrained the amount of electricity that can be delivered to distribution companies and end users.
The National Board for Technology Incubation (NBTI) has unveiled an investment and development-finance pipeline exceeding $600 million, alongside a proposed solar energy programme targeting one million micro and small businesses across Nigeria.
The Director-General, NBTI, Dr Kazeem Raji, disclosed this while presenting the outcomes of the 2026 NextGen Innovation Challenge at a World Press Conference, Abuja.
Raji said the investment pipeline comprised a proposed $500m solar energy programme for universities and polytechnics, which would be developed in partnership with Gigawatt Global, and a $100m financing opportunity linked to the Tinubu Light Initiative under a memorandum of understanding with Financial Innovation for Impact, UK, also known as Cambridge Investors.
He, however, clarified that the funds had not been fully secured or disbursed, stressing that their realisation would depend on due diligence, financing arrangements, contractual commitments, regulatory approvals and implementation requirements.
“These figures represent proposed investment and financing opportunities and should not be interpreted as $600m already received, disbursed or fully deployed in Nigeria,” he said.
According to Raji, the initiative was designed to connect Nigerian innovators with international investors, business leaders and development partners to accelerate the commercialisation of indigenous technologies.
He said the challenge attracted 298 Nigerian innovators from all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, up from 105 participants in 2025.
The innovations showcased covered artificial intelligence, robotics, agriculture, healthcare, education, renewable energy, telecommunications, digital technology, enterprise software, 3D printing and advanced manufacturing.
“Our message is straightforward: Nigeria’s innovators deserve visibility, our enterprises deserve opportunities to grow, and our technologies deserve pathways to the marketplace,” Raji said.
He added that NBTI’s priority was to move beyond showcasing ideas to helping innovators develop commercially viable products, establish sustainable businesses and create jobs.
The proposed Tinubu Light Initiative is expected to support one million micro and small businesses through access to solar energy solutions, with a proposed target of training and deploying 10,000 field marketers and creating 50,000 direct youth employment opportunities.
The initiative also targets N30bn in blended financing for its first phase and estimates annual economic benefits of about N12bn, subject to its underlying assumptions and implementation outcomes.
Raji said the programme was conceived to address the energy challenges facing small businesses, including high operating costs associated with unreliable electricity and dependence on petrol and diesel generators.
Tailors, barbers, hairdressers, pharmacies, food vendors, neighbourhood retailers, printing businesses and digital-service providers, he stated, are among the potential beneficiaries.
He said the initiative also envisaged opportunities to promote business formalisation and financial inclusion, particularly among informal enterprises, where appropriate arrangements could be established.
However, the NBTI director-general acknowledged that the programme’s success would depend on sound financing, transparent beneficiary selection, reliable equipment, maintenance arrangements and measurable delivery.
“Our vision is to make clean-energy access an enabler of enterprise development, not merely an infrastructure intervention,” he said.
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