Dangote Petroleum Refinery recalls 800 engineers after union dispute, issues conditional pardon

Dangote Petroleum Refinery has recalled approximately 800 engineers who were redeployed or dismissed following a labour dispute with a union in October 2025, offering what management described as a conditional pardon after months of appeals and federal government intervention.

The recall was announced in an internal memo on April 30, signed by Devakumar Edwin, Group Vice President for Oil and Gas. All affected engineers, including those who declined earlier redeployment offers and those who accepted postings to other parts of the Dangote Group, will be invited for a meeting and then reassigned to resume duties at the Lekki refinery.

The October 2025 dispute centered on membership of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, known as PENGASSAN. The union alleged that roughly 800 refinery workers were dismissed for volunteering to join its membership. The Dangote Group maintained that the action was a reorganisation targeting workers who were disrupting operations and undermining the stability of the facility, not a response to union activity.

PENGASSAN responded by shutting down oil and gas facilities for several days, triggering a significant national disruption. Power generation dropped, and oil production declined as the industrial action spread beyond the refinery. The federal government eventually stepped in, directing the Dangote Group to redeploy rather than dismiss the affected workers. Some engineers were sent to postings in states including Borno, Zamfara, Benue and other locations far from Lagos. A number were assigned to sites including a coal mine in Benue and road construction projects in Borno and Ebonyi. Many refused the postings.

The recall closes a chapter that had become an embarrassment for Africa's most closely watched infrastructure project. The Dangote refinery, which cost 20 billion dollars and is the world's largest single-train oil refinery by throughput, has been under intense scrutiny since it began operations. It is central to Nigeria's ambition to reduce dependence on imported refined petroleum products and to Aliko Dangote's broader plan to list a stake in the refinery on multiple African stock exchanges through a pan-African IPO.

The conditional nature of the pardon came with a direct warning. Management said it expected returning engineers to demonstrate renewed dedication and made clear that any recurrence of misconduct would attract immediate and decisive sanctions. "We welcome our colleagues back, with the expectation of renewed dedication, and we look forward to working together to strengthen our operations and deliver excellence in the oil and gas sector," the statement said.