The Dangote Petroleum Refinery has closed its initial public offering (IPO), attracting investor applications from 120 countries across Africa and five other continents, in what the company described as a historic milestone for the continent.
The Lagos-based refinery, owned by Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, had initially scheduled the share offer to close on October 13 but extended the deadline by two weeks to allow more African investors to participate.
The company, however, did not disclose the total amount raised through the offering, although its initial fundraising target was $1.6 billion.
Dangote said earlier in October that the offer had exceeded the target by “more than three, four times,” suggesting that investor demand had surpassed the company’s initial expectations.
“This is a historic achievement for Africa. It shows what is possible when we believe in our continent, work together and invest in our shared future,” Dangote said in a statement issued late Tuesday.
According to the company, applications came from investors in all 54 African countries, as well as countries across the other five inhabited continents.
Dangote said the participation reflected international interest in the refinery and confidence in its long-term prospects.
“Investor applications spanning 120 countries demonstrate the extraordinary international interest in our business and the confidence that investors are placing in the future of this refinery,” he said.
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“The opportunity to own a stake in a major African industrial enterprise has reached investors across every African country and all six inhabited continents,” he added.
The refinery currently has a processing capacity of 700,000 barrels per day and plans to double its capacity to 1.4 million barrels per day. If achieved, the expansion could make it the world’s largest refinery by capacity, surpassing India’s Jamnagar refinery.
In July, the company secured $2.5 billion in investment from private investors, while last month it broke ground on a proposed $16 billion refinery project on Kenya’s Lamu Island. The planned facility is expected to have a capacity of 700,000 barrels per day.
The expansion plans come amid concerns over Africa’s dependence on imported refined petroleum products. According to an Africa Finance Corporation report published in April, the continent imports more than 70 per cent of its refined fuel.
The Dangote refinery’s share offering is expected to broaden investor participation in one of Africa’s major industrial projects, although the company has yet to publish the final amount raised through the IPO.