‘Nothing is impossible’ – Dangote says drivers, cooks, traders can own refinery share

• …My Refinery will become world’s largest by 2028

• …“Banks backed us without seeing license “

By Abubakar Yunus

President of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, on Monday, signed registration documents for the proposed initial public offering of Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE, with the billionaire businessman saying drivers, cooks, traders, servants and managers will have an opportunity to own shares in the refinery.

Dangote stated this at the signing ceremony held in Lagos, describing the transaction as an “IPO for the people” designed to democratise ownership of the massive industrial facility.

The IPO comprises 4.1 billion ordinary shares at N525 each and is expected to raise just over N2tn, according to Dangote.

The businessman said the minimum subscription would be 10 shares.

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

He said the transaction was not solely about raising funds for expansion, adding that the objective was to give people across the continent an opportunity to own shares in the refinery.

“So, this is why we have actually called it the IPO for the people. This is why we say that this is democratizing,” he said.

“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, and I’m sure they will continue to be happy now, future, and forever.”

‘Waiting for my dollar dividend’

Dangote also spoke about the potential returns to shareholders, referring to the possibility of dollar-denominated dividends.

He said investors could eventually use such dividends to meet expenses outside Nigeria.

“When, uh, they will end up having to say that yes, I’m waiting for that check for my dollar, uh, dividend to send for the school fees of my daughter in UK or anywhere in the part of the world,” he said.

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

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

From bankers’ trust to refinery IPO

Reflecting on the refinery’s journey, Dangote said the project began with bankers providing financial backing even before the company had settled on the refinery’s location or secured its licence.

“…bankers without them even seeing which site we were going to use. Without seeing the license, we didn’t even have a license of the refinery. But the shared trust between us and our bankers made them to put money on the table without asking too many questions. We thank you for your trust,” he said.

He said the company faced several hurdles in determining where to locate the refinery.

“Even though we had very false starts, several hurdles, in fact, on the land itself, we struggle for five years trying to find which land we’re going to use,” he said.

Dangote said the company spent three years and eight months at Olokola before moving to the Lekki Free Zone.

“Three years, eight months in Olokola, and then we spent over a year and a half before we got access to our land at Lekki Free Zone,” he said.

He also recalled resistance from members of the community when the company attempted to gain access to the Lekki site.

“We tried to enter, but I think the first fight where Mr. Dishi lost his life at the Lekki Free Zone because, you know, there was fight with the community and, you know, not on our own side. Our side is right inside, but the community were actually resisting, and that actually made them, you know, to understand what we wanted to do, and later on I think they allowed us in.”

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

“So, list of names, and the former governor of Lagos, Fashola, and also Ambode, they did extremely very well, and then later on, Sanwo-Olu, they did even better.”

Dangote said he was grateful to have witnessed the refinery reach the IPO stage.

“So today, I am indeed grateful to Almighty Allah for having spared our lives to witness this day.”

He urged Nigerians and Africans to take the lead in developing their 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. And by doing so, we provide opportunities for our people, we’ll also create prosperity.”

“Only then will the others take us very seriously. Only then we will be in the position to negotiate and walk away with terms that we desire, not those terms that are given to us.”

Dangote said the refinery represented more than an industrial project for Nigeria.

“The refinery means so much to our continent, from the man working in Simandou mines to the woman in the rich agricultural fields in Amhara, to the fisherman in Walvis Bay, and to the custodians of our ancient history in the desert at the northern tip of our continent.”

“Today, indeed, is a day of collective pride for all of us.”

He added: “This event signals that we can dream and dream big while we create prosperity for our people. Today also shows that nothing is impossible for us to achieve once we are focused and determined.”

Dangote said the refinery was part of the Dangote Group’s broader plan to accelerate industrialisation across Africa.

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

He said the group had changed its mindset as it continued to invest in Nigeria and expand into other African countries.

“That is why there has been a shift in the mindset of the group. As we continue to invest in Nigeria as the powerhouse in Africa, we must also preach and take this gospel to other parts of the continent.”

He cited expansion plans in Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Namibia.

“Through these plans, we have also inspired many other African entrepreneurs to join us in this journey to industrialize our continent.”

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

….My Refinery will become world’s largest by 2028

Aliko Dangote, said he Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals will become the world’s largest refinery by 2028.

“Today marks a significant milestone for us as not just a company, but as Nigerians and also Africans,” Dangote said.

“As we gather today to witness the preliminary activities that will set in motion the initial public offering (IPO) of the 700,000 barrels per day in the Dangote refinery and petrochemicals, the largest refinery in Africa, world’s largest single train, and soon to be the largest refinery by 2028 in the world history.”

….‘Banks Backed Us Without Seeing Licence’

Reflecting on the project’s development, Dangote said the journey began more than a decade ago when the group secured a loan agreement with the backing of its bankers.

He said the lenders demonstrated confidence in the project despite not having seen the refinery site or even a licence for the facility at the time.

“Today also shows that nothing is impossible for us to achieve once we are focused and determined,” Dangote said.

“Our vision 2030 mantra at the Dangote Group is accelerating Africa’s industrialisation.

“We have learned the hard way, and we cannot industrialize if we do not have the energy security.”

He said the group’s investment strategy had consequently shifted towards strengthening energy security in Nigeria, which he described as the powerhouse of Africa, while extending its industrialisation plans to other parts of the continent.

Dangote said the group had announced expansion plans in Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Namibia, and other African countries, with the group’s investments also encouraging other entrepreneurs to participate in Africa’s industrialisation.

On the proposed share offering, Dangote said ownership would not be restricted to a particular category of investors.

“There is no segregation on who can own the shares,” he said.

“We want every human being living on the continent to be part of this action, and I’m sure they will continue to be happy now, future, and forever.”

Also speaking, David Bird, chief executive officer (CEO), Dangote refinery, said as a merchant refiner, the refinery serves Nigeria, prioritising West African markets.

He added that “no better time than right now can we demonstrate the world class quality of our products because we are the largest jet fuel supplier into Europe”.

Bird said Africa’s industrialisation had reached a point where it was contributing to the momentum of the global economy.

The CEO said he was particularly proud of the refinery’s operational performance over the past six months, noting that it had helped cushion some of the effects of supply disruptions linked to conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine.

Bird said the Dangote refinery had evolved into a trading-led merchant refinery capable of processing a wide range of crude grades and supplying multiple international markets.

He said the 700,000-bpd facility was by far the largest refinery in Africa and already ranked among the five or six largest refineries globally.

Bird said the planned expansion was fully sponsored, engineered, and procured, leaving construction as the major outstanding phase.

“This is now just a construction exercise that we believe we can deliver by 2028 to make the Dangote refinery the largest integrated refinery and petrochemical complex on the planet,” he said.

Bird added that the refinery’s scale and quality placed it firmly among the world’s leading facilities.