Africa’s richest man and President of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has announced plans to take the group’s fertiliser business public in 2028.
Dangote disclosed this during an interview at the Qatar Economic Forum while discussing the group’s business structure and its decision to open up some of its businesses to more investors.
According to him, the company had traditionally operated without partners but was now creating opportunities for a large number of people to become shareholders.
He also joked about the reaction of Nigerians who recently bought shares in the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, saying some of the new shareholders had already started acting like members of the company’s board.
Dangote said, “You must have seen that they’ve been calling me now for a board meeting.”
The comment came amid a wave of humorous social media posts by Nigerians who purchased shares in the refinery’s ongoing initial public offering.
Some investors have jokingly described themselves as co-owners and partners of the refinery, while others have created memes and videos suggesting that they now have a say in the company’s affairs because they own shares.
Speaking about the group’s fertiliser business, Dangote confirmed that it would also be listed on the stock market.
Asked whether the fertiliser company would be taken public, he said, “Oh, yeah, yeah. I mean, we will IPO it. It’s going to be the biggest fertilizer company on earth.”
When asked when the listing would happen, Dangote replied, “Yes, it will be 2028.”
Dangote Fertiliser operates a major urea production plant in Lagos and has plans to significantly increase its production capacity.
The planned 2028 listing would make the fertiliser business another major Dangote Group company opened to public investors, following the ongoing share offering involving the Dangote Petroleum Refinery.
The announcement is expected to further increase public interest in the group’s plans to raise capital and broaden ownership of some of its major businesses.
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