Nigeria's Dangote Group, founded by Aliko Dangote, Africa's richest person, is considering investment opportunities in Egypt. The group's businesses include cement, oil refining, and fertilizer production, and it is expanding across Africa. On Saturday, 3 October, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi discussed potential investments with Dangote in New Alamein. The talks covered energy, fertilizers, chemicals, and cement.
The Dangote Group was founded in 1981, and its principal holding company is Dangote Industries Limited, headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria. The group has a diverse portfolio, including cement, petroleum refining, petrochemicals, fertilizers, sugar, salt, seasonings, agriculture, packaging, and logistics. Aliko Dangote, the group's founder and president/chief executive, graduated from Al-Azhar University in Cairo.
Dangote Cement, one of the group's listed businesses, has an installed production capacity of 55 million tonnes annually across 10 countries. The company is also among the group's listed businesses, alongside Dangote Sugar Refinery and NASCON Allied Industries, which produces salt and seasonings.
The group's refinery in the Lekki Free Zone near Lagos began processing crude in 2024 and has a current refining capacity of 700,000 barrels a day, with expansion planned to 1.4 million barrels a day. The complex also produces polypropylene, with a capacity of 830,000 tonnes annually.
Dangote's fertilizer complex in Nigeria has a first-phase capacity of 3 million tonnes of urea annually and a stated construction cost of $2.5 billion. Dangote said in September that he hoped to list the fertilizer business in 2027, while outlining expansion targeting 12 million tonnes in annual capacity.
The group is also investing in other African countries, including Kenya, where it broke ground on a planned $16 billion refinery in Lamu on 30 September. The project targets a capacity of 700,000 barrels a day and completion in 2030. In Ethiopia, the group has declared and signed investments exceeding $4 billion, covering fertilizer production and supporting infrastructure.
The Dangote Group aims to reach $100 billion in annual revenue by 2030, with the support of Afreximbank. The talks with President El-Sisi took place during the Alamein Africa business forum, a biennial African business platform that brings together governments, financiers, and companies.
Key points
- The Dangote Group is exploring investment opportunities in Egypt, covering energy, fertilizers, chemicals, and cement.
- The group has a diverse portfolio of businesses, including cement, oil refining, and fertilizer production.
- The group's aim is to reach $100 billion in annual revenue by 2030.
