In a strategic shake-up following recent staff cuts, the Dangote Group has redeployed several refinery engineers to its sugar and cement plants, as the company moves to protect operations and maintain stability across its business empire.
Insiders disclosed that while new engineers will be hired to fill the vacant positions, the reassignment marks a major setback, considering that many of the affected staff had received specialized overseas training and were instrumental during the refinery’s commissioning phase.
“The workers will move to sugar, cement, and other business units. The company invested heavily in their training, and many of them were part of the commissioning phase. Losing that experience hurts, but protecting the refinery comes first,” an official said.
Sources further revealed that some of the engineers could be transferred to Dangote’s operations abroad, while others have already attracted offers from international companies impressed by their technical expertise.
Amid growing concerns over salary disparities between expatriates and Nigerian staff, a consultant explained that such gaps are common in large-scale industrial startups.
“Every new industrial operation brings in global experts before fully transitioning to local staff. Refinery operations differ from upstream oil exploration, so salary structures cannot be compared,” the consultant stated.
The redeployment process, according to insiders, is already underway and being handled individually. Once concluded, some of the displaced engineers will resume new roles across Dangote’s local and international operations.
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