NATIONWIDE SHOCKWAVE: PENGASSAN Forces Dangote Refinery Shutdown Amid Fierce Labour Showdown

The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) on Sunday enforced a dramatic shutdown of the $20 billion Dangote Refinery, plunging Africa’s largest oil project into crisis and sending ripples across the energy sector.

In a fiery escalation of its industrial action, the union confirmed that operations at the refinery have been completely crippled. According to updates from PENGASSAN, the refinery plant is now 100 per cent shut down, while fertiliser plant Train Two is also offline and Train One is running at only 60 per cent capacity. The diesel unit remains operational, though its fate hangs in the balance.

The shutdown follows a bitter fallout between the refinery and the union after over 800 Nigerian workers were allegedly dismissed for belonging to PENGASSAN. The union, describing the mass sacking as “unacceptable and anti-labour,” ordered its members nationwide to withdraw their services, effectively grounding oil installations across the country.

“This is a fight for survival and justice for Nigerian workers,” a senior PENGASSAN official declared, warning that the strike will continue until all demands are met.

Dangote Refinery, however, has hit back, describing the union’s directive as nothing short of “economic sabotage”, insisting that it has acted within its rights as an employer.

With crude oil and gas supply to the refinery now disrupted, fears are mounting over potential fuel shortages and wider economic repercussions in the coming days.

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has waded into the dispute, urging both parties to return to the negotiating table before the standoff spirals into a full-blown national energy crisis.

As tension deepens, the refinery—hailed as Nigeria’s hope for self-sufficiency in fuel production—finds itself at the heart of a storm that could reshape the country’s oil and gas landscape.