Nigerians to Buy Shares in Dangote Refinery

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The President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has revealed that Nigerians will soon have the opportunity to invest directly in the Dangote Refinery, describing the initiative as part of efforts to expand public ownership of the project.

Dangote disclosed this on Saturday while addressing journalists during a facility tour by the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Bayo Ojulari, alongside members of the NNPC board and executive management team. He stated that arrangements were in progress to enable individuals to purchase shares in the refinery within the next four to five months.

“Individually, Nigerians too will have an opportunity… in the next maximum four or five months, they will actually be able to buy their shares,” Dangote said.

The businessman explained that NNPC currently holds a minority stake in the refinery on behalf of Nigerians.

“They are holding 7.25 per cent of the shares that we have here… and they are holding that on behalf of Nigerians,” he said.

Dangote further noted that investors would be given options regarding how they receive dividends from their holdings.

“People will have a choice either to get their dividends in naira or to get their dividends in dollars because we earn dollars,” he said.

Beyond opening the project to public investment, the billionaire stated that the refinery would enhance collaboration with NNPC to strengthen operations and explore further opportunities across the oil and gas value chain.

“I think the sky is the limit and we [NNPC and Dangote Refinery] will cooperate and also make sure that we work together to make sure that we make Nigerians proud,” he said.

Addressing possible upstream partnerships, Dangote said talks were ongoing.

“Most likely, depending on our own discussions with them, we will partner with them, maybe in some of the upstream. They, too, will partner with us here because here is not a refinery. It’s an industrial hub,” he stated.

He also revealed that additional industrial projects within the complex, including the production of linear alkylbenzene used in detergents, would position the facility as a major supplier across Africa.

“That raw material for detergent will be sufficient for the entire African continent… and we will deliver all this in the next 30 months,” he added.