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Chairman/Chief Executive of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote has said the planned listing of Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals on the Nigerian Exchange is designed to democratize wealth creation and provide direct access for Africans to participate in the continent's industrial transformation.
Dangote spoke during a visit by the leadership of the South African Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) along with the Public Investment Corporation and Alterra Capital Partners to the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals and Dangote Fertilizer Limited in Lagos.
The South African delegation included the President of the GEPF, Frans Ballenyi; GEPF Chief Executive Officer, Moses Mabesa; PIC Vice President, Mongwena Maluleke; Chief Executive Officer of PIC, Patrick Dlamini; and Genevieve Sangudi, managing partner of Alterra Capital Partners.
The visit comes amid growing investor interest in Africa-led industrialization and long-term infrastructure investments. GEPF is Africa's largest defined benefit pension fund, managing the superannuation and related benefits of more than 1.8 million public sector employees in South Africa, while PIC is the continent's largest asset manager.
Speaking on the planned refinery listing, Dangote said Africa's next phase of economic development must be based on large-scale industrial projects capable of creating jobs, strengthening domestic production capacity and generating broad-based prosperity.
“We are opening the door for investors to participate directly in Africa’s industrial future and the prosperity it will bring,” Dangote said.
According to him, the refinery project reflects the scale of untapped opportunities within Africa's energy market, especially as most African countries remain dependent on imported refined petroleum products despite growing industrial demand and rising consumption.
Dangote said the group's long-term investment strategy is driven by Africa's growing energy needs and the urgent need for regional refining capacity capable of serving multiple markets across the continent.
The billionaire industrialist said demand for products such as polypropylene, aviation fuel and refined petroleum products has exceeded earlier estimates, strengthening the refinery's commercial viability and shaping future expansion plans.
“We thought of Nigeria first and then export, but even with our current production, we are practically living hand to mouth because the market demand is so high,” he said.
Speaking after a tour of the Dangote facilities in Ibeju-Lekki, GEPF Chairman, Frans Baleni, said the refinery is proof that Africa can execute transformative infrastructure projects when supported by visionary leadership, long-term investment and strong technical expertise.
“If it can be done elsewhere in the world, it can be done in Africa,” he said. “This project has shown that the continent is capable of achieving world-class industrialization on a large scale.”
Baleni said the significance of the project extends far beyond Nigeria's borders.
He said: “What has been created here is a reshaping of how the world should think about African industrial potential – and it should reshape how Africa thinks about itself. For too long, projects of this magnitude have been linked to other parts of the world. The Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals Complex is a powerful demonstration that, with visionary leadership and long-term capital, that perception is no longer tenable. This is the African-led industrial scale that institutional investors on the continent need to support.” Should do.”
On his part, PIC Chief Executive Officer, Patrick Dlamini described the refinery as one of the most transformative industrial projects ever undertaken on the continent, saying it is reshaping global perceptions of Africa's industrial capabilities and economic potential.
Quoting former South African President, Nelson Mandela, Dlamini said: “It always seems impossible until it's done. This project is redefining the story of Africa and the possibilities of Africa.”
He said PIC, which manages approximately $230 billion of assets primarily on behalf of South Africa's Government Employees Pension Fund, is actively seeking long-term partnerships with infrastructure development, industrialization and economic transformation across Africa.
“PIC's mandate is to deploy long-term, patient capital in the service of industrialization, infrastructure and economic transformation across Africa,” Dlamini said. “What we have seen today reinforces our conviction that the next chapter of African prosperity will be written through partnerships between African institutional capital and African industrial champions. There is real strategic alignment between Dangote’s industrial agenda and how we are positioning our portfolio, and we look forward to exploring meaningful avenues for collaboration.”
According to him, poverty, unemployment and economic exclusion remain key drivers of instability across Africa, making industrialization and large-scale job creation critical to the long-term development of the continent.