Aliko Dangote, Chairman of Dangote Petroleum Refinery, has announced plans to sell between five and ten percent of the refinery’s shares on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited during the next year.
In an interview with S&P Global, he stated that the move would follow the same path as other Dangote Group companies listed on the public market, such as Dangote Cement and Dangote Sugar Refinery.
“We don’t want to keep more than 65%-70%,” Dangote said, adding that the refinery shares would be offered gradually, depending on investor demand and market conditions.
He also disclosed that the group is exploring strategic partnerships with investors from the Middle East to fund the refinery’s expansion and support a new petrochemicals project in China.
He stated, “Our business concept is going to change. Now, instead of being 100 percent Dangote-owned, we’ll have other partners.”
Dangote also hinted at potentially increasing the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited’s stake in the refinery.
The national oil firm had previously lowered its stake to 7.2 percent, but the business mogul indicated more talks might take place once the refinery’s next expansion phase begins.
Regarding the NNPCL’s investment, he stated, “I want to demonstrate what this refinery can do, then we can sit down and talk.”
The refinery, which began operations in 2024, expects to increase capacity from 650,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 700,000 bpd by the end of the year.
He stated that the long-term goal is to raise output to 1.4 million bpd, surpassing the world’s largest refinery in Jamnagar, India, which now produces 1.36 million bpd.
Beyond refining, the corporation is increasing its chemical output. He announced ambitions to increase polypropylene output from one million to 1.5 million metric tons per year while also developing additional base oil and linear alkylbenzene ventures.
Commenting on ongoing maintenance operations, Dangote stated that the majority of technical concerns had been handled, but that a one-month shutdown may be required for final modifications.
“We have resolved most, not all, but most of the problems. And I think we’re looking for a window when we shut down for another month,” he said.
He stated that the maintenance schedule would be planned to avoid disruptions during the end-of-year peak in gasoline demand.
