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Aliko Dangote, Africa’s wealthiest person, just fired the starting gun on the continent’s largest IPO ever. Dangote Petroleum Refinery & Petrochemicals FZE began selling 4.1 billion new ordinary shares on September 14, priced at 525 naira (roughly $0.40 each), in a deal that could raise $1.6 billion in gross proceeds and climb to approximately $2.1 billion if a 30% greenshoe option is exercised.
The implied post-offer valuation sits somewhere between $47 billion and $50 billion.
What the money is for
The IPO proceeds are earmarked for a $14.3 billion expansion project designed to double the refinery’s processing capacity from 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day to 1.4 million barrels per day by 2029.
The Lekki Free Zone facility outside Lagos already supplies a significant share of Nigeria’s gasoline while exporting jet fuel and other petroleum products across the region.
The refinery’s financials give the expansion ambitions some credibility. After posting losses in the prior year, the facility swung to a net profit of $1.82 billion in the first half of 2026, on revenues exceeding $13 billion. That turnaround was partly fueled by supply disruptions tied to conflicts in the Middle East, which tightened global refining margins and rewarded anyone with functioning capacity.
A warm-up act that went well
In July 2026, Dangote Petroleum completed a private placement that raised $2.5 billion at an approximate valuation of $40 billion. That round was 3.7 times oversubscribed. The private placement diluted Dangote’s personal stake in the company but reportedly increased his net worth by around $20 billion.
The public offering is being positioned squarely at retail investors across Africa. The minimum purchase is just 10 shares, or about $4. Dollar-denominated dividends are another feature, providing investors a built-in hedge against local currency risk.
Shares are expected to list on the Nigerian Exchange main board by late November 2026.
Why this matters beyond Nigeria
A $47 billion to $50 billion listing on the Nigerian Exchange would instantly become the most valuable company on any African bourse.
For the broader African refining landscape, the expansion plan carries competitive implications. The continent has historically exported crude oil and imported refined products. A 1.4-million-barrel-per-day facility would shift that equation meaningfully, potentially displacing imports from European and Asian refineries.
The original Dangote refinery itself took years longer to complete and cost significantly more than initially projected. The $14.3 billion expansion project also faces infrastructure bottlenecks, regulatory unpredictability, and currency volatility in Nigeria.
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