Dangote ready to invest heavily in Nigeria's upstream oil sector
Africa's richest man says he has the capital to become a major crude producer as he pursues a $30 billion expansion of his refining business.
Aliko Dangote, President and Chief Executive of Dangote Industries Limited, has said he is prepared to commit substantial capital to Nigeria's upstream petroleum sector should the opportunity arise.
The industrialist, Africa's wealthiest individual, is pressing ahead with plans to spend more than $30 billion expanding his refining operations. His 650,000-barrel-per-day refinery at Lekki, east of Lagos, is the largest single-train facility of its kind in the world and has transformed Nigeria's fuel supply, which long depended on imported petroleum products despite the country's status as a leading crude producer.
Mr Dangote's ambitions in production come as the major international oil companies continue to retreat from refining on the continent, leaving domestic players to fill the gap. Securing reliable crude supply has been a recurring challenge for the Lekki refinery, which has at times sourced feedstock from abroad.
A move into exploration and production would give the group control over a larger share of the value chain, from wellhead to pump. Mr Dangote has not specified which assets he would pursue.