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Africa’s largest oil refinery, Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals, based in Nigeria, has named David Bird as its new Chief Executive Officer, effective August 1. This leadership change is part of the company’s strategic efforts to expand across Africa.
Bird brings over three decades of experience in the oil and gas sector, including 14 years at Shell. Notably, he led the USD 12 billion Prelude Floating LNG project and served as CEO of the Q8 Refinery in Oman. He also held senior roles at Shell’s Pulau Bukom facility in Singapore and chaired Shell Australia’s RAP board.
The appointment comes as the refinery works to overcome production hurdles and advance its ambitious expansion goals, including fuel distribution throughout Nigeria—an initiative already facing resistance. Bird stated that his focus will be on maximizing output, improving efficiency, and positioning the company as a global leader, while driving its expansion beyond Nigeria to the wider African market.
Commissioned in May 2023 by former President Muhammadu Buhari, the refinery has a capacity of 650,000 barrels per day. It began producing diesel and aviation fuel in January 2024, followed by petrol in September 2024, with products meeting international standards.
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Dangote has also partnered with Premier Product Marketing LLC to export polypropylene globally and plans to begin fuel distribution to end-users by August 15, 2025, using a fleet of 4,000 CNG-powered trucks. The company has revealed plans to list on both the Lagos and London stock exchanges, though no timeline has been announced.
