Nigeria’s Dangote Group has appointed David Bird, a former Shell executive and past CEO of the OQ8 refinery in Oman, as the new Chief Executive of its Refinery and Petrochemical division.
The appointment, which took effect on August 1, is seen as a strategic move to accelerate Dangote’s pan-African expansion goals.
Bird brings more than 30 years of experience in the oil and gas industry.
His background includes 14 years at Shell, where he led the $12 billion Prelude Floating LNG project, according to Business Day.
Bird assumes leadership at a critical time, as Dangote’s $20 billion refinery, the world’s largest single-train facility, continues to scale up production following its official commissioning in January 2024.
In a LinkedIn post, Bird shared that his focus will be on optimising refinery operations and expanding the company’s reach across Africa.
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While the Lagos-based refinery has ramped up output, it has also faced some early operational issues such as design flaws and unit upsets.
These challenges have led the company to diversify its crude oil feedstock in order to stabilise production.
Amid criticism of Aliko Dangote’s alleged preference for international partners, Africa’s richest man recently announced that Nigerians will soon be able to buy shares in the refinery.
Dangote Group plans to list the refining business on both the Lagos and London Stock Exchanges, though no timeline has been given for the dual listing.
Meanwhile, the refinery is undergoing a strategic upgrade aimed at boosting its daily production capacity from 650,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 700,000 bpd by the end of 2025.
Dangote’s entry into the refining space has already disrupted long-standing global trade patterns and is expected to bring an end to the $17 billion-per-year gasoline export market from Europe to Africa.
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Image Credit: Business Insider Africa
