Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE has unveiled plans for a public offering that could raise more than N2 trillion, with the company setting a minimum subscription of just 10 ordinary shares valued at N5,250.
The Chief Executive Officer of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, disclosed this on Monday at the signing ceremony for the proposed Initial Public Offering (IPO), held at Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.
Under the offer, investors will be able to subscribe to 4.1 billion ordinary shares at N525 per share. Each share has a nominal value of $0.000013.
Dangote said the company was deliberately setting a low entry point to make ownership of the refinery accessible to a broad spectrum of Nigerians, describing the offering as an “IPO for the people.”
“In this IPO, we intend to raise just a bit more than N2 trillion, which I’m sure is too small, at an offer price of N525 naira, with a minimum subscription of only 10 shares to fund our expansion of the refinery,” he said.
He explained that proceeds from the offer would primarily support the expansion of the refinery, while also creating an opportunity for Nigerians to acquire an ownership stake in one of the country’s most ambitious industrial projects.
According to him, the initiative was designed to ensure that ownership of the refinery would not be limited to institutional investors or wealthy Nigerians.
He said the structure would allow “drivers, our cooks, our servants, our managers, and everybody” to become shareholders.
Dangote added that investing in the company could provide subscribers with an avenue to build long-term savings through equity ownership, urging Nigerians to view the offer not merely as an investment opportunity but as a chance to participate directly in the growth of the refinery.
The proposed IPO marks a significant development in the evolution of the Dangote refinery, which was conceived as a major response to Nigeria’s longstanding dependence on imported petroleum products.
Located in the Lekki Free Zone, Lagos, the 650,000-barrel-per-day facility is among the largest single-train oil refineries in the world. Its development has been closely watched because of its potential to transform Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector, reduce dependence on imported refined products and strengthen the country’s position as a petroleum-products supplier in Africa.
The refinery began supplying refined petroleum products to the Nigerian market after commissioning, amid expectations that increased domestic refining would help reduce pressure on foreign exchange and improve the security of fuel supply.
Its proposed expansion and the planned injection of additional capital through the IPO indicate an attempt to deepen the refinery’s capacity and broaden its economic impact.
For Dangote, however, the public offer is also about changing the ownership structure of the strategic asset.
By fixing the minimum subscription at 10 shares, the company is seeking to bring small-scale investors into the fold and potentially create a broad shareholder base around an asset that has, until now, been overwhelmingly associated with the Dangote conglomerate.
The company said the offer would therefore serve a dual purpose: raising substantial capital for expansion and opening the doors of ownership to Nigerians across different income groups.
The proposed offer, if successfully completed, would represent one of the most significant attempts to mobilise domestic retail investment around a major Nigerian industrial enterprise.
Dangote maintained that the objective was to make the refinery’s future growth a shared opportunity, rather than an enterprise whose benefits accrue only to its promoters and large investors.
With an offer price of N525 per share and a minimum subscription of N5,250, the proposed IPO is positioned as a mass-market investment opportunity, subject to the applicable regulatory and offer terms.
