President and Chief Executive Officer of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, has said the planned Initial Public Offering (IPO) of the Dangote Refinery will give ordinary Nigerians, including drivers, cooks and domestic workers, an opportunity to own shares in the massive industrial project.
Dangote made the declaration on Monday in Lagos while speaking at the signing ceremony for the IPO of the 650,000-barrels-per-day Dangote Refinery.
He said the public offering was designed to broaden ownership of the refinery and ensure that the investment was not limited to wealthy individuals, institutional investors and financial institutions.
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“What we are trying to achieve is to make sure our drivers, cooks, servants, and everybody have the opportunity of having stakes in the refinery,” Dangote said.
The ceremony was attended by prominent figures in Nigeria’s financial sector, including Zenith Bank Chairman, Jim Ovia, and Heirs Holdings Chairman, Tony Elumelu.
Under the offer, the refinery is expected to put 4.1 billion ordinary shares of $0.000013 each on offer at ₦525 per share.
The IPO marks the refinery’s first public offer since its commissioning in 2023, following nearly a decade of construction and an estimated investment of about $20 billion.
READ ALSO: Dangote Refinery becomes europe’s biggest jet fuel supplier
Located within the Lekki Free Zone in Lagos, the facility has a stated refining capacity of 650,000 barrels per day and is described as Africa’s largest single-train refinery.
The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved the IPO, which the company described as potentially one of the largest transactions in Nigeria’s capital market.
A company official said the refinery is expected to be listed on the Nigerian Exchange on September 14.
The funds raised through the public offering are expected to support a major expansion programme aimed at increasing the facility’s processing capacity from its current operational baseline of 700,000 barrels per day to 1.4 million barrels per day.
If achieved, the proposed expansion would position the facility among the largest operating oil refineries globally, surpassing India’s Jamnagar refinery complex.
READ ALSO:Dangote Refinery becomes europe’s biggest jet fuel supplier
The planned capital raise comes after the Dangote Group completed a $2.5 billion private placement in July.
At the offer price of ₦525 per share, the refinery’s implied market valuation is estimated at about $47 billion.
A fully subscribed offering could also significantly increase the overall market capitalisation of the Nigerian Exchange, with estimates suggesting an increase of between 30 and 40 per cent.
Commissioned in May 2023, the Dangote Refinery has since become a major source of refined petroleum products for the Nigerian market.
The refinery’s long-term performance, however, remains dependent on factors including crude oil availability, export growth and refining margins.
READ ALSO:Dangote raises $2.5bn in private share placement ahead of Africa’s biggest IPO
The Dangote Group is also seeking to expand its refining footprint beyond Nigeria. The company plans to break ground on a proposed 700,000-barrels-per-day coastal refinery in Lamu, Kenya, on September 30.
The September 14 IPO is expected to provide a major test of investor appetite and liquidity on the domestic stock market, while also determining the extent to which Nigerians and other investors participate in ownership of one of Africa’s largest industrial projects.
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