Aliko Dangote, president of the Dangote Group, has revealed that the company turned down attempts by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd.) to increase its stake in the Dangote Petroleum Refinery beyond the current 7.25 per cent holding.
Dangote disclosed this during an interview with Nicolai Tangen, chief executive officer of the Norwegian Sovereign Wealth Fund, explaining that the decision was tied to plans to eventually list the refinery publicly and allow more Nigerians to participate in ownership.
“The national oil company already owns 7.25 per cent, and they are trying to buy more. We are the ones that said no; we want to now spread it and have everybody be part of it,” Dangote said.
The $20 billion refinery, located in Lekki, Lagos, has rapidly emerged as a major force in Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector.
NNPC acquired its 7.25 per cent stake in 2021 for $1 billion, with an option to purchase an additional 12.75 per cent stake by June 2024. However, the company later chose not to proceed with the additional acquisition.
Dangote recalled that the original agreement would have given NNPC a 20 per cent stake in the refinery, but the balance for the remaining shares was never paid.
“The agreement was actually 20 per cent, which we had with NNPC, and they did not pay the balance of the money up until last year; then we gave them another extension up until June (2024), and they said that they would remain where they had already paid, which is 7.2 per cent,” he stated.
Meanwhile, petrol supply from the Dangote refinery reportedly rose to 3.18 billion litres in the first quarter of 2026, while fuel imports dropped sharply to 965.52 million litres during the same period.
The refinery’s average domestic ex-depot petrol price between January and March 2026 was estimated at around ₦1,000 per litre, meaning the facility supplied over ₦3.2 trillion worth of petrol locally within the quarter.
The report further noted that tensions involving the United States and Iran, alongside disruptions in the global oil market, have created stronger export opportunities for the refinery, boosting earnings from refined petroleum exports.
Speaking on risks facing his businesses, Dangote identified inconsistent government policies as a major challenge.
“The other biggest risk is government inconsistencies in policies,” he said.
He also revealed that future investors in the group’s businesses would receive dividends in dollars due to the company’s growing export-driven revenue.
“What we are announcing is that when you invest in any of our businesses going forward — in cement, refinery, petrochemicals, or fertiliser — we guarantee to pay you dividends in dollars because we are very well into exports. Eighty per cent of our revenue will be in dollars,” he explained.
Dangote further disclosed that he sold his properties in the United States and the United Kingdom to focus entirely on industrial development in Nigeria.
“When I decided to go into the industry, I sold all my properties in the US. I had two houses in the US and one in the UK. I wanted to really sit in Nigeria and concentrate,” he said.
He added that he now prefers staying in hotels whenever he travels rather than owning homes abroad.
“It’s just like now; we created a vision for 2030. So, I know I have a target to meet,” Dangote said.
On the group’s business philosophy, he explained that the focus remains on producing goods Nigeria heavily depends on imports for.
“I first of all look at what we need as a people. What is it that we are supposed to be producing, and we’re importing? So we do what you call backward integration,” he said.
