Dangote Refinery to Float $2 Billion Pan‑African IPO In 2026
A ten percent stake in Africa’s largest single‑train refinery will be offered to public investors through a Pan‑African Initial Public Offering scheduled for 2026, Alhaji Aliko Dangote has confirmed. The share sale, which analysts estimate could raise approximately two billion dollars based on the facility’s twenty billion dollar valuation, marks the first time equity in the 650,000‑barrel‑per‑day Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE will be traded on capital markets.
Dangote disclosed the timeline during an Atlantic Council event in Washington DC on Thursday. He stated that the listing is designed to “support long‑term investments and deepen African capital market participation.” According to the industrialist, shareholders will receive dividend payments denominated in United States dollars, though precise financial projections for the offering remain undisclosed.
The company has appointed Stanbic IBTC Capital Limited, Vetiva Advisory Services Limited, and FirstCap Limited as advisers for the proposed IPO. Dangote noted that the transaction aligns with a broader forty billion dollar investment programme spanning five years, covering refinery expansion, fertiliser production, and mining ventures across the continent. The plan includes quadrupling fertiliser output, increasing refining capacity, and establishing potash and phosphate plants in the Democratic Republic of Congo, alongside copper refining projects in Zambia.
The refinery, located in the Lekki Free Trade Zone, attained full operational capacity recently. Its ramp‑up coincided with supply disruptions linked to Middle East tensions, which strengthened global demand for its products. The facility has also emerged as a jet fuel supplier to European markets, according to Dangote.
Alan Gelder, Senior Vice President of Refining, Chemicals and Oil Markets at consultancy Wood Mackenzie, described the refinery as “highly profitable.” He cited data showing diesel exports rose to approximately 79,500 barrels per day in April from 73,600 in March, while gasoline shipments declined to 50,100 barrels per day from nearly 102,400 over the same period. The shift in product mix reflects market‑driven optimisation, Gelder noted.
The refinery, which cost an estimated twenty billion dollars to build, began processing crude in 2024 and has gradually expanded output to its nameplate capacity. Its ability to export refined products has altered Nigeria’s historic dependence on imported fuel and repositioned the country within global energy supply chains.
Dangote’s announcement comes amid renewed investor interest in African infrastructure assets and follows earlier indications that the group was considering equity sales to institutional partners. While the exact timing of the IPO in 2026 and the exchanges where shares will list are yet to be specified, the move is expected to test the depth and liquidity of regional capital markets.