Nigerians at home and abroad are being urged to buy into the Dangote Petroleum Refinery’s Initial Public Offering (IPO), with former Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi among those publicly throwing his weight behind the deal.
Obi said he has fielded numerous questions from citizens weighing whether to invest, and has consistently encouraged them to do so, framing the offer as proof that Nigeria can shift from a consumption-driven economy to a production-driven one.
In a post on his X handle on Wednesday, Obi called on other Nigerian businesses to follow suit by opening their shares to public ownership as a way of advancing the country’s re-industrialization drive.
His endorsement comes as Aliko Dangote, President and CEO of Dangote Industries, pitched the $1.6 billion offering, described as Africa’s largest-ever IPO, to investors at the “Facts Behind the Offer” session at the Nigerian Exchange in Lagos.
Dangote framed the listing not merely as a fundraising exercise but as a chance for ordinary Nigerians to gain ownership stakes in a refinery that is already generating substantial profit. He said shareholders investing now are positioning themselves for attractive returns while building wealth that could benefit future generations.
The offer involves 4.1 billion ordinary shares priced at ₦525 each, with a minimum buy-in of just 10 shares, or ₦5,250 — a structure designed to draw in everyone from civil servants and students to pension funds and diaspora investors.
Dangote disclosed that the refinery pulled in roughly ₦19.47 trillion in revenue during the first half of 2026, with after-tax profit hitting ₦2.55 trillion.
At the offer price, the refinery would carry an implied market capitalisation near ₦65.22 trillion. Combined with Dangote Cement and Dangote Sugar Refinery, the listing would push the Dangote Group’s equity cluster to roughly ₦83.5 trillion, the largest on the Nigerian Exchange.
NGX Group Chairman Umaru Kwairanga called the transaction a landmark for African capital markets, while Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu said it was reshaping global perceptions of what African markets can achieve.
Botswana Stock Exchange CEO Kesegofetse Molatlhegi praised the project as evidence of Africa’s industrial ambition, and Dangote Petroleum Refinery CEO Davide Bird noted the plant has become Europe’s largest single supplier of refined petroleum products, en route to its 2030 goal of becoming the world’s largest integrated refining and petrochemical complex.
Dangote closed by describing the offer as a chance for investors to move from consumers to owners of a business built for long-term, generational value.
