The Dangote Group is taking a major step towards listing its petroleum refinery on the Nigerian capital market as it prepares to sign the documents for its Initial Public Offering (IPO) in Lagos today.
The signing ceremony, scheduled for Monday, is expected to involve the company, its financial advisers and other key stakeholders. The transaction is being described as Africa’s largest-ever share sale if completed at the approved size.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved the offer of 4.1 billion ordinary shares at ₦525 per share. If all the shares are sold, the refinery could raise approximately ₦2.15 trillion, or about $1.6 billion.
Money will support refinery expansion
A major purpose of the fundraising is to finance the planned expansion of the Dangote Refinery.
The refinery currently has a nameplate capacity of 650,000 barrels of crude oil per day, although the company has reported operating at higher levels during testing and production.
Dangote plans to eventually increase capacity to about 1.4 million barrels per day.
The expansion would make the facility one of the world’s largest oil refineries and strengthen Nigeria’s position as a major supplier of refined petroleum products.
Investors will have an opportunity to buy shares
The IPO will give investors an opportunity to own a stake in one of Nigeria’s biggest industrial projects.
The SEC has also registered the refinery’s existing 120.13 billion ordinary shares, giving the company an implied valuation of roughly $47 billion based on the approved offer price.
The size of the transaction means it is being closely watched by investors, financial institutions and other participants in Nigeria’s capital market.
IPO order book expected to open September 14
Although the signing ceremony is taking place today, the actual subscription process is expected to begin later.
Reports indicate that the IPO order book is scheduled to open on September 14, 2026. The offer also includes a possible 15 per cent over-allotment option, commonly known as a greenshoe, if demand is higher than the initial number of shares offered.
This means investors will have to wait until the formal offer opens before they can subscribe to the shares.
A major test for Nigeria’s capital market
The Dangote Refinery IPO is significant not only for the company but also for Nigeria’s financial market.
The transaction will test how much appetite exists among Nigerian and international investors for a large industrial company with significant exposure to the energy sector.
The successful completion of the offering could also deepen Nigeria’s capital market by bringing more investors into the ownership of major industrial assets.
For Dangote Group, the fundraising provides an opportunity to obtain additional capital without relying entirely on traditional bank financing.
Refinery’s growing role in Nigeria’s energy sector
The refinery, located in the Lekki area of Lagos, was built at a reported cost of about $20 billion and has become an important part of Nigeria’s petroleum industry.
The facility has increasingly supplied refined products to the Nigerian market and has also exported products to international markets.
The planned expansion would significantly increase its production capacity and could strengthen Nigeria’s ability to supply petroleum products domestically and across Africa.
As the IPO documents are signed today and preparations continue for the September 14 opening, investors will be watching closely to see whether the massive offer attracts enough demand.
If fully subscribed, the transaction would provide Dangote Refinery with about ₦2.15 trillion in fresh capital and mark a historic moment for Nigeria’s capital market.
