The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), and representatives of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery on Friday agreed to maintain status quo preceding the resolution of September 9/25.
According to NUPENG General Secretary, Comrade Afolabi Olufemi, this was their resolution during a meeting between NUPENG and Dangote Refinery official at the office of the Department of State Services in the Federal Capital Territory, (FCT), Abuja.
He said: “We just finished the meeting at the DSS with the Minister of Labour and Employment (State) Nkeiruka Onyejocha, in attendance with the Deputy Director General of DSS and other operatives of DSS, the representatives of NMDPRA, Dangote, Trade Union Congress (TUC); Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and NUPENG.
“The resolution of the meeting is to maintain the status quo preceding the resolution of 9/9/2025. MRS Energy Ltd was asked to go and put back the NUPENG Stickers he instructed his drivers to remove from his trucks on Wednesday 10/9/2025.”
NUPENG had on September 9 suspended its two-day strike as contained in a Memorandum of Understanding reached at the end of the conciliation between the Management of Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Limited and NUPENG at the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment.
The communique was signed by the Managing Director, Dangote Group, Sayyu Dantata; the representative of the Nigeria Labour Congress, (NLC), Comrade Benson Upah; Executive Director. Nigerian Midstream And Downstream Petroleum Regulatory, Ogbugo Kalu Ukoha; representative of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), N.A. Toro; official of Dangote Group, Otunba Jibrin; NUPENG President, Comrade Akporeha Williams. NUPENG General Secretary, Comrade Afolabi Olawale; and Director, Trade Union Services & Industrial Relations, Falonipe Amos for the Minister of Labour and Employment.
The communique stated that after exhaustive deliberations, the following resolutions were reached by both parties.
“That since workers’ unionization is a right in line with the provisions of the extant laws, the management of Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals agreed to the unionization of employees of petrochemicals who are willing to unionise.
“That the process of unionization shall commence immediately and be completed within two weeks (9th – 22nd September, 2025) and it was agreed that the employer will not set up any other union.”
It added that, “arising from the strike notice, no worker or employee of Dangote refinery and petrochemical will be victimized. Parties will revert to the Minister of Labour and Employment a week after the conclusion of the engagement.”
But on Thursday, the truce collapsed as NUPENG’s National President, Williams Akporeha, accused Sayyu Aliu Dantata, a cousin of Aliko Dangote and key player in the refinery’s trucking operations, of defying the resolution reached on September 9.
Akporeha in a statement alleged that within 48 hours, Dantata ordered drivers to strip NUPENG stickers from their vehicles and forcefully enter the refinery in violation of union loading procedures.
He said: “Alhaji Sayyu Aliu Dantata flew over them several times with his helicopter and then called the navy of the Federal Republic to come over ostensibly to crush the union officials. Our members are waiting for him and his agents to run them over.”
It was reported that NUPENG blocked areas leading to Dangote refinery with their trucks.
But Dangote Petroleum Refinery has dismissed the NUPENG’s allegations and insisted that claims of anti-labour practices, monopolistic behaviour, and planned fuel price hikes are “entirely unfounded.”
Dangote Refinery reiterated its full support for constitutionally protected labour rights, stating that employees are free to affiliate with any recognised trade union.
“Assertions that drivers are compelled to waive union rights are categorically false,” the statement said, adding that the dispute involves NUPENG’s Petrol Tanker Drivers (PTD) unit and does not implicate the refinery in any breach of rights,” it said.
According to the statement, Central to NUPENG’s allegations is the roll-out of over 4,000 CNG-powered bulk trucks, which the union claims could displace existing jobs.
Dangote Group, however, in the statement firmly refuted this, and described the initiative as a cornerstone of Nigeria’s energy transition strategy.
“The deployment of CNG-powered trucks is a strategic initiative designed to support national energy transition goals, not to displace existing jobs,” the company stated. Each truck will be operated by a six-person team, with drivers receiving salaries significantly above the national minimum wage, plus medical cover, pensions, housing allowances, and long-term access to housing loans. The company aims to have 10,000 such trucks in operation by year-end, potentially creating over 60,000 direct jobs,” it said.
Responding to accusations of monopolistic behaviour, Dangote Refinery emphasised its compliance with Nigeria’s deregulated oil sector under the supervision of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
The company highlighted that over 30 refinery licences have been issued to private players, with active developments by BUA, Aradel, Walter Smith, and the Edo Refinery.
“While we are major industry player, our presence has revitalised the downstream sector, reopened previously dormant petrol stations and restored investor confidence,” the management said.
