By Paul Ejime

Dangote Industries Limited (DIL) is targeting an annual revenue of US$55 billion from the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, which is expected to expand production from 650,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 1.4 million bpd, as the world’s largest, Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man and President of DIL, has projected.

The facility is currently estimated to be generating about US$30 billion a year despite U.S. tariff concerns and other industry volatility.

Briefing the media at the weekend in Lagos, Dangote said the US$20 billion refinery in Lagos, the largest single-train refinery in the world, “will more than double its capacity within the next three years, making it a global leader in petroleum refining and a major driver of Africa’s industrial renaissance.”

He estimated that the refinery’s revenue could exceed US$55 billion annually, making it one of the most valuable industrial assets on the African continent.

“This expansion reflects our confidence in Nigeria’s future, our belief in Africa’s potential, and our commitment to building energy independence for our continent and the world. It is also about confidence in Nigeria, in Africa, and in our capacity to shape our own energy future,” Dangote said.

“It is the dream of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, for Nigeria to emerge as one of the major suppliers of petroleum products in the world. And with his strong backing through his policies, we are taking on the challenge to make this happen.”

According to him, the expansion reflects the group’s belief in Africa’s potential to achieve energy independence and transform its economy from being an exporter of raw crude to a hub for refined petroleum products.

He also revealed that the expansion would be financed through a mix of cash flow, public listing, and strategic investors, adding that when completed, the refinery would “surpass India’s Jamnagar Refinery, currently the world’s largest, cementing Nigeria’s position as a global refining hub.”

Dangote said the refinery would also expand its polypropylene production capacity from 900,000 metric tonnes to 2.4 million metric tonnes a year, further boosting the output of linear alkylbenzene, a key ingredient in detergent manufacturing, along with additional production of base oils.

“With this expansion, the refinery transitions from producing Euro V to Euro VI fuel standards, meeting the highest global environmental benchmarks,” he said.

“We will also expand our power generation capacity to 1,000 megawatts, ensuring complete operational self-sufficiency. More than 85% of our workforce will be Nigerian, with continuous investment in skills development and technology transfer. Our commitment to safety, sustainability, and local participation remains unwavering throughout every phase of the expansion.”

Dangote reaffirmed plans to list a significant portion of the refinery’s shares on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) within the next year, describing it as part of “efforts to democratize ownership and allow Nigerians to share in the value creation.”

“We want the Dangote Refinery to be the golden stock of the (Nigerian) Exchange. Listing outside Nigeria is secondary to us. We want this to be a national asset in every sense. This is a step toward broader ownership and market transparency. Therefore, we call on all Nigerians to seize this window, to benefit from this golden opportunity. Our long-term goal remains clear: to build Africa’s leading integrated energy and petrochemical hub the first of its kind on the continent,” he added.

He said the refinery’s strong cash flow, profitability prospects, and strategic positioning would also make it attractive to both local and global investors.

“This expansion will create additional jobs, support thousands of SMEs, and deepen our industrial base. Our goal has never been just to refine oil, but to refine opportunities for our people,” he said, adding:  “It is a vote of confidence in Nigeria, in the reforms of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, and in the ability of Africans to build and manage world-class infrastructure.”

Dankote expressed gratitude to President Tinubu and the Federal Government for supporting industrialisation policies such as Nigeria-First, Naira-for-Crude, and the One-Stop Shop initiative, which he said “have emboldened investors to take on transformative projects.”

He also commended the “government’s intervention in mediating recent disruptions at the refinery linked to union activity and sabotage attempts,” calling it a demonstration of effective collaboration between the public and private sectors.

Despite not yet recouping the initial investment in the 650,000 bpd phase, Dangote said the “group is focused on long-term transformation rather than short-term returns.”

“Refining is a long-term project. We are expanding because we believe in Africa,” he said. “Without this refinery, Nigeria would still be buying dollars at ridiculous rates and depleting our reserves to import fuel,” he said, adding that “Nigeria’s pump price remains among the lowest in the region despite the refinery’s production of higher-quality, cleaner fuels that have reduced toxic dumping in the country.”

“Nigerians today buy petrol at roughly half the price of what our neighbours pay, and it is even cheaper than in Saudi Arabia,” he said. “Our product is of higher quality, meeting Euro VI standards, and it has significantly reduced the dumping of toxic fuel into our market.”

As Nigeria approaches the festive season, often characterised by fuel shortages in the past, Dangote assured the public that there would be no fuel scarcity or price hike during the ember months, despite recent global price increases.”

“In the last three days, we have witnessed an eight-per-cent spike in global oil prices. But I want to assure Nigerians that the Dangote Refinery is fully committed to maintaining an uninterrupted supply of petrol throughout the festive period. For the first time in many years, Nigerians can look forward to a Christmas and New Year free of fuel anxiety,” he said.

He called on other investors holding refinery licences to emulate the DIL’s example…, adding “When Africa builds its own capacity, it builds its own destiny.”

DIL is the largest employer of labour in Nigeria’s private sector.

Founded in 1981 as a trading enterprise, importing sugar, cement, rice, fisheries, and other consumer goods for distribution in the Nigerian market, the Dangote Group later branched into manufacturing in the 1990s, starting with textiles, moving onto flour milling, salt processing and sugar refining by the end of the decade.

The Group next branched into cement production, growing rapidly with factories now in 12 African countries.