ABUJA — After several hours of intense negotiations between Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), the long-standing feud that led to the termination of about 800 refinery workers has been resolved.
The reconciliation meeting, convened at the instance of the Ministry of Labour and Employment, came on the heels of PENGASSAN’s directive to halt gas supply to the refinery and its threat to withdraw services nationwide in protest of the mass sack.
The high-level discussions, which stretched across Monday, 29th and Tuesday, 30th September, 2025, were chaired in the office of the National Security Adviser (NSA). Present at the talks were the NSA himself, the Ministers of Labour and Employment, Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Budget and Economic Planning, as well as the Ministers of State for Labour and Employment and Petroleum Resources (Gas), represented by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum Resources.
Also in attendance were the Directors-General of the Department of State Services (DSS) and the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, chief executives of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), representatives of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), the management of the Dangote Group, as well as the President and Secretary-General of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and the leadership of PENGASSAN.
In a communique released at the end of the marathon meeting and signed by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Mohammed Maigari Dingyadi, it was agreed that all disengaged staff would be recalled and redeployed to other subsidiaries within the Dangote Group.
The communique also emphasized that no worker would be victimized for participating in the dispute, while reaffirming that unionisation is a fundamental right of workers under Nigerian labour laws.
It read in part:
“Whereas the leadership of PENGASSAN explained that the directive to stop gas supply to Dangote Refinery and the withdrawal of services were in response to the termination of over 800 of its members, the management of Dangote Refinery explained that the disengagement was due to an ongoing reorganization within the company.
“After extensive deliberations, it was resolved that:
All disengaged workers will be recalled and redeployed to other companies within the Dangote Group.
No worker will be victimized as a result of their involvement in the dispute.
PENGASSAN will begin the process of calling off the strike in good faith.”
The resolution brings an end to a tense standoff that threatened industrial peace in the oil and gas sector, with both parties agreeing to move forward on mutual trust and dialogue.
