Africa’s richest man Aliko Dangote is set to expand his business portfolio by launching a new refinery worth $20 billion.
The new oil refinery with a daily capacity of 650,000 barrels, is set to commence operations in December.
In an interview, Dangote revealed that he was doing final touches which included construction of a port, road and other amenities to support it’s operations.
The billionaire added that extensive measures were undertaken during construction, including laying enough cable to circle the globe twice and moving 65 million tonnes of sand.
Despite facing delays and surpassing the initial cost estimate of $12-14 billion, the commissioning process began in May 2023. The refinery is expected to start with 350,000 barrels a day, with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) supplying up to six crude oil cargoes for the initial phase.
Dangote expressed confidence in reaching the refinery’s full capacity by the end of 2024, although the IMF remains skeptical about achieving more than a third of that by 2025. The facility, touted as the world’s largest “single train” refinery, aims to significantly reduce Nigeria’s foreign exchange spending on imported fuel.
Dangote emphasized the need for Nigeria, a major oil producer for over 50 years, to refine its own crude in substantial quantities. He also revealed plans to eventually float the refinery business as a separate company on the Lagos Stock Exchange.
The billionaire decided to diversify his investment from cement and fertilizer now to oil refinery.
This is touted to further increase his valuation in the continent.
