Nigeria’s Dangote Petroleum Refinery is preparing to raise between $1.55 billion and $1.8 billion through its highly anticipated initial public offering, potentially making the transaction one of the largest listings in African capital markets, CNBC Africa reported. Two sources familiar with the deal told Reuters that the offering will involve 4.1 billion shares priced between ₦500 and ₦595 each, with ₦525 per share reportedly under consideration. The order book is expected to open on September 14, although Dangote Refinery has not publicly commented on the final pricing.
The planned offering comes after the refinery secured a $1 billion underwriting programme in August, comprising a fully funded $600 million private placement and a further $400 million commitment to support the IPO. The underwriting, arranged by Marob Strategies and Consulting and Lilium Capital Group, is designed to provide additional confidence around the public offering while broadening participation from institutional investors across Africa and international markets.
The fundraising forms part of Dangote’s broader expansion strategy for the $20 billion refinery, which has reached its nameplate capacity of 650,000 barrels per day and has tested production of up to 700,000 barrels per day. The company has previously indicated that the wider IPO could target as much as $5 billion, with proceeds expected to support plans to increase refining capacity to about 1.4 million barrels per day.
For Nigeria, the listing could become a defining moment for the domestic capital market by giving investors direct exposure to one of Africa’s most strategically important energy assets. The refinery has already begun reshaping Nigeria’s petroleum trade, with refined fuel exports to Europe rising sharply as production expands. A successful IPO would deepen local ownership of the facility while providing Dangote Industries with fresh capital to finance expansion and strengthen its position in Africa’s downstream energy market.
