The Dangote refinery has assured Nigerians that there will be no petrol shortage despite an ongoing strike by the union representing fuel tanker drivers.

The strike, which began on Monday, has drawn support from other local and international unions. It comes as the refinery Africa’s largest, with a capacity of 650,000 barrels per day begins deploying its own drivers to deliver fuel to retailers.

“There is no fuel shortage, everything is going on,” refinery spokesman Anthony Chiejina told AFP on Tuesday, adding that talks were ongoing between the union, the government, and the company.

Before the refinery’s commissioning last year, Nigeria, despite being a top oil producer, relied almost entirely on petrol imports due to the neglect and mismanagement of state-owned refineries. The new plant has since driven down fuel prices for consumers while disrupting entrenched players in the sector long plagued by corruption.

However, the refinery’s growing dominance has also stirred concerns over potential monopoly, given its backing by Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote.

Last month, Dangote announced plans to roll out thousands of compressed natural gas-powered trucks to distribute petrol nationwide. The initiative has faced delays due to logistics, but it threatens to upend a market where over 20,000 diesel-powered tankers have operated for decades.

The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), which launched the strike, accused Dangote of hiring drivers on the condition that they do not join a union an allegation the company flatly denied.

“What Dangote has shown over time is that he’s not prepared to have workers that will have a say in his employment,” NUPENG president Williams Akporeha told Arise News on Tuesday.

The strike has garnered solidarity from the Nigeria Labour Congress, as well as international groups such as global union IndustriALL in Switzerland and the International Lawyers Assisting Workers network in Washington.

Chiejina, however, dismissed the claims of anti-union practices as “cheap blackmail.”

“It’s not true… nobody has done that and nobody ever has,” he said.