Africa’s richest person and the President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has revealed why his mega-refinery denied the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited an opportunity to increase its stake in the Dangote Petroleum Refinery.
Dangote disclosed this during an interview with Nicolai Tangen, Chief Executive Officer of the Norwegian Sovereign Wealth Fund, on Wednesday, May 13.
The NNPC currently owns a 7.25% stake in the $20 billion Lekki-based refinery after acquiring the shares for $1 billion in 2021, although the state oil company had initially planned to acquire a 20% stake before scaling back the deal.
What Dangote is saying
According to Dangote, the refinery rejected the NNPC’s request for additional equity because the company plans to broaden ownership and eventually allow more Nigerians to participate through a public listing.
He explained that rather than concentrating ownership further, the company wants to spread the shares across a wider pool of investors.
- “The other biggest risk is government inconsistencies in policies, and we are addressing that one because if you look at our refinery, the national oil company already owns 7.25%, and they are trying to buy more. We are the ones that said no; we want to now spread it and have everybody be part of it.”
Dangote also reiterated that future investors in his businesses would be able to receive dividends in foreign currency, a move expected to attract both local and foreign investors amid continued pressure on the naira.
According to him, the company’s growing export earnings across cement, fertiliser, petrochemicals, and refined petroleum products provide enough foreign exchange inflows to sustain dollar-denominated dividend payments.
- “What we are announcing is that when you invest in any of our businesses going forward, in cement or in the refinery, in petrochemicals, in fertiliser, we guarantee to pay you a dividend in dollars because we are very well into exports. 80 per cent of our revenue will be in dollars,” he said.
More insights
Speaking further during the interview, Dangote opened up about the personal sacrifices he made while building his industrial empire in Nigeria, revealing that he sold off his luxury properties in the United States and the United Kingdom to focus fully on his businesses at home.
According to him, owning foreign properties often creates distractions and divided attention, which was why he decided to simplify his lifestyle and commit himself completely to his long-term industrial vision for Nigeria.
- “When I decided to go into the industry, you know what I did? I sold all my properties in the US. I had two houses in the US, big mansions, and I had a house in the UK. I wanted to really sit in Nigeria and concentrate,” he said.
He added that he now prefers staying in hotels whenever he travels instead of maintaining private homes abroad, noting that the arrangement allows him to remain focused on achieving the targets he has set for his businesses.
What you should know
In 2021, the national oil company agreed to acquire a 20% stake in the refinery for about $2.76 billion, but only completed payment for 7.25% equity valued at roughly $1 billion.
By 2024, Dangote publicly disclosed that the NNPC failed to pay the balance required to complete the original agreement despite being granted an extension until June 2024.
The latest comments from Dangote also come as the company prepares to open up ownership of the refinery to a wider pool of investors through planned listings on multiple African stock exchanges — a move expected to further deepen regional participation in one of Africa’s largest industrial projects.
In addition, Dangote had earlier revealed that there are plans to double the capacity of his $20 billion oil refinery in Lagos to 1.4 million barrels per day (b/d), a move set to make it the world’s largest refining facility.
