LAGOS, Nigeria — The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has suspended its planned strike after reaching an agreement with the management of the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals.
The decision followed the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Monday, September 8, 2025, between union leaders, refinery management, and regulators.
The MoU, dated Monday, September 8, 2025, was signed by Sayyu Dantata, managing director of the Dangote Group; Ogbugo Ukoha, executive director of distribution systems, storage, and retailing infrastructure at the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA); Benson Upah, acting general secretary of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC); and Nuhu Toro, general secretary of the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC).
According to the agreement, both parties accepted that unionisation is a legal right under Nigerian law.
The refinery’s management consented to the unionisation of employees at both the refinery and petrochemicals divisions “who are willing to unionize.”
The process, the MoU stated, will begin immediately and be completed by Monday, September 22, 2025.
The agreement also barred the creation of parallel unions within the company.
NUPENG secured assurances that no employee would face victimisation for their role in the strike action.
The union had threatened to down tools beginning Monday, September 8, 2025, citing alleged anti-union practices at the $20 billion refinery.
With the deal in place, NUPENG said it had “suspended the industrial action with immediate effect.”
Both sides agreed to report back to the Minister of Labour a week after the conclusion of the unionisation process.
The Dangote Refinery, inaugurated in 2023, is the world’s largest single-train facility and a key plank of Nigeria’s efforts to end decades of reliance on imported petroleum products.
