President and Chief Executive of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, has disclosed that investor appetite for the planned listing of Dangote Petroleum Refinery & Petrochemicals on the Nigerian Exchange remains exceptionally strong, with indications of interest for private placement already exceeding $2 billion.
Dangote spoke during a visit by the leadership of FirstHoldCo to the 650,000 barrels per day refinery and Dangote Fertiliser Limited in Ibeju Lekki, Lagos, where he reiterated the Group’s commitment to broadening ownership of Africa’s largest refinery through retail investor participation across Nigeria and the continent.
According to him, the planned Initial Public Offering is designed not only to raise capital but also to create wealth and allow ordinary Africans to participate directly in the value being created through industrialisation.
“There is significant interest in the IPO and private placement,” Dangote said. “Requests for private placement have already exceeded $2 billion. We are not allocating the full amount requested, but the response reflects the confidence investors have in the refinery and in the future of African industrialisation.”
He added: “We want ordinary Africans to participate in the value being created,” he said. “What companies like Amazon and Apple achieved for investors globally is the kind of wealth creation we want to replicate in Africa. We want people to invest, grow with us, and share in the prosperity.”
He further revealed that the proposed East Africa Refinery, expected to have a capacity of 700,000 barrels per day alongside polypropylene and base oil production facilities, could commence within the next three to four years once construction begins.
According to Dangote, the new project was not originally captured in the Group’s Vision 2030 growth strategy, indicating that the company is already on course to exceed its long-term revenue targets.
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He said the Group has maintained strong leadership positions across its businesses over the last five years, including cement operations across 11 African countries, while also expanding aggressively into refining, petrochemicals, and fertiliser production.
Dangote added that the Group has expanded cement capacity to 55 million tonnes per annum, launched major projects including the refinery and fertiliser plant, and developed clinker export terminals to strengthen regional trade and exports.
“We have built businesses that address Africa’s critical needs and create long-term value for the continent,” Dangote said. “Africa should stop exporting raw materials while importing finished products. That is equivalent to exporting jobs and importing poverty.”
Chairman of FirstHoldCo, Femi Otedola, in his remarks, appealed for the acquisition of $100 million worth of shares in the proposed listing of Dangote Petroleum Refinery, describing the project as a transformative industrial platform that is helping to free Africa from decades of economic dependence on imported petroleum products.
Otedola praised Aliko Dangote for building the world’s largest single-train refinery and driving Africa’s industrial transformation.
“He is a genius and one of the greatest men to come out of Africa. What he has done is helping to liberate the continent from economic slavery and import dependency,” Otedola said. “I have visited this refinery more than 25 times, and I have appealed to him to allocate $100 million worth of shares to me during the private placement. That is one of the reasons I sold my stake in Geregu so I can reinvest the proceeds in the Dangote Petroleum Refinery.”
Otedola also expressed confidence in Dangote Group’s planned expansion of refining capacity to 1.4 million barrels per day, noting that the scale of demand for refined petroleum products across Africa justifies further investment in domestic refining infrastructure.
Chief Executive Officer of FirstBank Group, Olusegun Alebiosu, described the refinery as a symbol of vision, courage, and industrial ambition capable of inspiring similar investments across the continent.
“If you see this refinery and realise that an individual conceived and delivered a project of this magnitude that is already helping to stabilise energy supply across Africa, you cannot help but be inspired,” Alebiosu said. “We have delegates here from the United Kingdom and several African countries, and I believe they will return home with a renewed commitment to building industries that can transform their economies. It is about building Africa together.”
