The Dangote Group is ready to redeploy refinery engineers, who were sacked for joining the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, to the company’s sugar and cement plants, Sunday PUNCH has learnt.

The company will also recruit new engineers to replace the redeployed ones.

Sources in the refinery, who did not want to be mentioned because of the sensitivity of the matter, said the redeployment was a huge loss to the company.

It was gathered that some of the 800 could also be deployed to units within the group’s operations outside the country.

PENGASSAN shut down oil and gas facilities between Sunday and Tuesday over allegations that 800 refinery workers were fired for volunteering to be members of the union.

But the Dangote refinery said it only sacked a few workers who were sabotaging the facility.

Oil and gas workers went on strike in defence of their colleagues, causing the nation losses in oil and gas production as well as a drop in power generation.

The intervention of the Federal Government restored peace as the Dangote Group was asked to redeploy the sacked workers.

Speaking with one of our correspondents, an official said Dangote had no issue with the workers’ decision to join a union, but the act of sabotage could not be tolerated.

The workers were accused of releasing sensitive information to those perceived as the enemies of the refinery.

Sunday PUNCH gathered that some of the affected engineers were among those trained outside the country to build the refinery.

“The workers will be redeployed to sugar, cement and other business units. Some of us are pained because of some of those affected. They are prospects, and the company had good plans for them.

“Has anyone looked at the loss to the company? The majority of these guys were fresh graduates employed by the company, sent abroad for training and then absorbed into the system. These are probably the first set of Nigerian engineers who had been part of the commissioning of a refinery. How many engineers from this part can boast of being part of the commissioning of a big project like this? They were part of it from the beginning. You can’t buy that in the market. You can’t compare the experience of someone who was part of commissioning with someone who was employed after the project.

“How many generations of engineers in Nigeria have that opportunity? Employing new hands requires training them because most Nigerian graduates lack work experience. Can you quantify that investment? It’s a lot, but you can’t risk saboteurs in the system. Then the time before they become grounded? And a refinery gives room for minimal error; otherwise, your investment is gone,” a source stated.

It was disclosed that some of the engineers had earlier been poached by a foreign company because of their prowess.

On claims that expatriates were paid higher than Nigerian engineers, a consultant explained that Nigerians who were expatriates in other countries also enjoyed some benefits.

“It is normal that in the formative stage of every business you get the best hands to run it, but as you train your people, they take charge. While a refinery sounds fancy, it is not in the upstream, so you can’t compare the salaries. IOCs and other upstream players will pay higher than a refinery,” the consultant said as he reacted to allegations of low wages.

Another source said some of the workers would be sent outside the country, stating that the redeployment process was underway and would be concluded on a case-by-case basis.

“The reinstated workers would be deployed to different units. As you know, the Dangote Group operates multiple facilities both in Nigeria and outside the country. So, some of the employees will be redeployed to those locations. It will go through a process, but once concluded, they will resume their new roles. Hopefully, it should not take too long,” the source said.

The Dangote Refinery, a 650,000-barrel-per-day integrated facility located in the Lekki Free Zone, Lagos, is Africa’s largest oil refining project.

The plant is expected to significantly reduce Nigeria’s dependence on imported refined petroleum products while creating thousands of direct and indirect jobs.

The official added that the refinery remained committed to implementing agreements reached with union leaders during a meeting with the Federal Government.

The Dangote refinery has in recent weeks come under fierce attacks. It began with the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers and the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria, which accused the plant of monopolistic practices and unfair pricing that threatened the survival of independent marketers.

The marketers alleged that Dangote’s terms placed them at a disadvantage and demanded government intervention.

NUPENG clashed with the refinery over workers’ rights, saying Dangote prevented tanker drivers from unionisation.

The association shut down the refinery and fuel depots despite a government-brokered agreement.

The standoff escalated when PENGASSAN entered the fray, condemning the mass dismissal of hundreds of workers.

The union responded by directing a halt to crude and gas supplies, sparking nationwide disruptions and fuel queues.

Government mediation eased tension, but stakeholders are waiting for the implementation of agreements reached by all parties during the conciliation meeting organised by the government.