Drivers, cooks, traders can own refinery shares – Dangote

LAGOS — President of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, on Monday said drivers, cooks, traders, domestic staff and managers would have the opportunity to own shares in the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE through its proposed Initial Public Offering, IPO.

Dangote stated this at the signing ceremony for the registration documents of the proposed IPO in Lagos, describing the offer as an “IPO for the people” aimed at broadening ownership of the 700,000-barrel-per-day refinery.

The offer comprises 4.1 billion ordinary shares at N525 each and is expected to raise slightly above N2 trillion, with a minimum subscription of 10 shares.

Dangote said the transaction was not solely intended to raise funds for the refinery’s planned expansion, but also to give ordinary Nigerians and other Africans an opportunity to acquire a stake in the facility.

“But it is not only to fund the expansion of the refinery. What we are trying to do is to make sure majority of all these my—our drivers, our cooks, our servants, our managers, everybody, they will have an opportunity to have a stake in this refinery,” he said.

He added: “This is why we have actually called it the IPO for the people. This is why we say that this is democratising.

“There is no segregation on who can own these shares. We want every human being living on the continent to be part of this action.”

‘Waiting for my dollar dividend’

Dangote also highlighted the potential returns to investors, including the possibility of dollar-denominated dividends.

He said such returns could enable shareholders to meet expenses outside Nigeria.

The signed prospectus values the offer at about $1.6 billion, while the IPO places the value of the refinery at about $49 billion.

The public offer is scheduled to open on September 14 and close on October 13.

From project to public offer

Reflecting on the refinery’s development, Dangote said the project had received the backing of bankers even before the company finalised the site or obtained the refinery licence.

He said the project faced several challenges, including difficulties in securing suitable land, before the company eventually settled at the Lekki Free Zone.

Dangote said the company spent three years and eight months at Olokola before moving to Lekki, where it later gained access to the site.

He acknowledged the contributions of former Lagos governors Babatunde Fashola and Akinwunmi Ambode, as well as Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, to the development of the project.

Energy security

Dangote said the refinery was part of the Dangote Group’s broader strategy to accelerate industrialisation in Africa, arguing that energy security was essential to achieving that objective.

“Our Vision 2030 mantra at the Dangote Group is ‘accelerating Africa’s industrialisation.’ We have learned the hard way and we cannot industrialise if we do not have energy security,” he said.

He said the group was also pursuing investments in other African countries, including Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Namibia.

Dangote urged Nigerians and other Africans to take a leading role in developing the continent’s economies.

“As I have said repeatedly, we as Nigerians and Africans must be bold and lead the change to develop our economies and our continent,” he said.

He added that the refinery demonstrated that major industrial projects could be achieved through determination and sustained investment.

Meanwhile, the public offer is expected to open to investors on September 14.

An independent check by our correspondent on Monday afternoon showed that the refinery had not yet been officially listed or commenced trading on the Nigerian Exchange or investment platforms including Bamboo.