From How Aliko Dangote Built Africa’s Biggest Refinery Against All Odds · · ttybrandafrica
“We have been having fuel queues for 52 years. Sometimes people used to stay at fuel during Christmas, you might have to go and queue for 2 days trying to buy fuel for a country that produces oil. And we have tried government refineries, they are all destroyed. They were not really doing well. So, we said okay, fine. Let me take this bold decision.”
On , Aliko Dangote, CEO at Dangote Group, spoke about Nigerian fuel crisis during How Aliko Dangote Built Africa’s Biggest Refinery Against All Odds on ttybrandafrica.
Aliko Dangote, founder and CEO of the Dangote Group, has been promoting large-scale industrial projects across Africa. He stated that the group plans to invest $45 billion in new investments between 2026 and 2030, including a proposed 650,000-barrel-per-day oil refinery in East Africa, which he said would be identical to the one in Nigeria. Dangote said piling has already started on an expansion of the Nigerian refinery to 1.4 million barrels per day, which he described as potentially the largest in the world and equivalent to 10% of U.S. refining capacity. He also discussed plans to increase urea production from 3 million to 12 million tons annually, which he said would make the company the world's largest producer of urea. Dangote has spoken about the need for African governments to provide consistent policies and support for domestic investors. He said that Africa must stop exporting raw materials and instead process them locally, arguing that exporting raw materials "exports jobs" and importing finished goods "imports poverty." He noted that the Dangote Group is targeting a September 2026 initial public offering for the refinery, with dividends to be paid in dollars, and said there has been strong investor demand, with requests approaching $2 billion in a private placement. Dangote also said he is a member of the African Renaissance group, which he described as a group of 54 African business leaders who meet annually in Kigali, Rwanda.