Aliko Dangote, president of Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), has seen his wealth double to $27.8 billion after the operationalization of his multibillion-dollar oil refinery.

According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Dangote’s net worth increased by $15.1 billion, bringing it to $27.8 billion as of October 18, 2024.

The business mogul now ranks 65th, making him the only African among the top 100 richest people globally.

This new ranking places Dangote more than 100 spots ahead of Johann Rupert, the South African billionaire, who ranks 174th.

His increased fortune has elevated his position by more than 40 places from his 111th ranking on June 30, 2023.

This surge follows over a year after the inauguration of his refinery in May 2023. The refinery, which has a capacity of 650,000 barrels per day, is located on 2,635 hectares of land in the Ibeju-Lekki free zone in Lagos.

The facility began producing diesel on January 12, 2024, though petrol production was delayed until September 3 due to several challenges, including issues with crude supply.

The difficulty in accessing crude feedstock from international oil companies (IOCs) in Nigeria forced the company to import crude from countries like Brazil and the United States to cover the gap.

On June 4, 2024, Dangote noted that some IOCs were struggling to supply crude to his refinery.

After intervention from President Bola Tinubu, the federal executive council (FEC) approved the sale of crude oil to Dangote’s refinery and other refineries in naira on July 29, 2024.

On October 5, 2024, the federal government announced that Nigeria had officially begun selling crude oil and refined petroleum products in naira, with the Dangote refinery and the national oil firm participating in the naira-based transactions.

• Why Ijesas Home And Abroad Are Rooting For The US Based Healthcare Administrator

A successful healthcare administrator based in the United States, proud Ijesha prince, historian per excellence, Dr. Oriyomi Adewunmi Akerele was born on August 10th 1974, to a the BILARO ruling house of Ijesaland.

He attended University of Ilorin where he bagged a B.A degree in history and eventually proceeded to the prestigious University of Arlington Texas where he obtained both is Masters and PhD in History. He also holds an MBA healthcare management from Dallas Baptist University.

A successful Prince of the soil, Dr. Akerele presently runs a top healthcare company in the US with a portfolio of over 7 billion USD, and still counting.

According to him, he is ready to take the position of the leadership of his home town where he has a lot of passion and drive to take to the next level considering his exposure in the international environment.

“I am passionate about the development of Ijesaland, I want to take our historical town and its people to a higher level of development through purposeful leadership through cooperation of all Ijesa sons and daughters both at home and abroad.

Adding that his intentions are pure and for the benefit of the sons and daughters of the ijesha land. “I intend to focus on the areas where the Ijesa’s have the comparative cost advantage over other towns in Yorubaland.

He has so far got the backings of the ijesa indigenes in diaspora to give him all the support in whatever way he might be needing them;

“I have the support and assurance of Ijesa sons and daughters in the diaspora and they are ready to lend their hands and resources for the development of our ancestral land”

“I am ready to leave my comfort zone and answer the call of leadership to the throne of my forefathers, I have the pedigree, exposure, love and compassion to lead Ijeshaland and rewrite the history, culturally, economically and socially” he concluded.

It will be recalled that Ijesha’s are a sub-ethnicity of the Yorubas of West Africa. Ilesha is the largest town and historic cultural capital of the Ijesha people, and is home to a kingdom of the same name, ruled by an Oba locally styled as the Owa Obokun Adimula. The last reigning Owa Obokun was Oba Gabriel Adekunle Aromolaran II, who joined his ancestors around September, 2023.

According to prince Oriyomi, “as Ijeshas, we need to connect our roots and stems to our present.

We (Ijeshas) are battle strong; we are smart business people; pace setters in everything we do. Our excellence should be studied.

What we need is a synergy of our strengths and a strong purpose of our collectivity” If opportune to ascend the throne of my ancestors, I will work with everyone to make Ijeshaland a prosperous land that would beam with pride, success while creating a generation of immaculate community. From our major towns of Iperindo, Ijebu-Ijesha, Osu, Esa Oke, Ikeji Arakeji, Owena, Imesi Ile, Ifewara and other several villages, we will have a land that we would bemoans opportunities and bliss.

Dr. Oriyomi is married to princess Oluwaseun Akerele nee Bakre of the Gbagura clan of Egbaland.

Tragedy struck in Edo state on Thursday when a compressed natural gas (CNG)-powered vehicle exploded at a NIPCO filling station along Benin-Auchi road, Uhunmwonde Local Government Area.

At least three people were seriously injured in the blast and rushed to the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) for treatment.

Those hospitalized include a passenger from another vehicle, a pump attendant, and an additional staff member from the filling station, eyewitnesses confirmed.

According to TheCable, a source at the gas station said that the explosion was caused by “the substandard conversion kits and cylinder used in the installation of the CNG on the Audi 80 salon car.”

“The driver of the car and the technician who installed the CNG kits in the vehicle had driven to the filling station to test the efficacy of the installation when the explosion occurred,” the source added.

“Some people patronise roadside technicians because of the high cost of conversion.”

• CNG Conversion Drive

The federal government has been persuading Nigerians to convert their gasoline-powered vehicles to CNG after President Bola Tinubu pulled the plug on the petrol subsidy regime in 2023.

The Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative (PCNGI) confirmed the Edo explosion in a statement posted on X.

The PCNGI said the vehicle was “illegally modified” to CNG.

The agency advised that only accredited conversion centres should be used to convert petrol-powered vehicles to CNG.

“A close examination of the cylinder in question in Benin City shows it was welded and modified and not approved for use for CNG,” the statement reads.

“The police, regulatory authorities and management of NIPCO are undertaking a painstaking investigation of the incident and we are coordinating with them.

“This incident reiterates the impetus of the PCNGI and our partners on the soon-to-be-launched Nigeria Gas Vehicle Monitoring System at SON, NMDPRA, NADDC and FRSC to tackle any bad actors in the ecosystem that seeks to make this safer, cheaper, cleaner and more reliable source of fueling risky for all.

“We also call on all stakeholders to cooperate with the new system of regulation and ensure full compliance.

“Only accredited conversion centres must be patronized and safe handling of CNG just like petrol ensures safety for all.”