Dangote Refinery Launches $1 Billion Private Placement, Offers 3 Billion Shares at $0.35 Each

Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals, a subsidiary of the Dangote Group, has launched a $1 billion private placement to fund its expansion plans. The company is offering three billion ordinary shares at $0.35 each to institutional investors, family offices, and high-net-worth individuals.

The fundraising is being led by Vetiva Advisory Services Limited as lead advisor and joint issuing house, with FirstCap Limited acting as joint issuing house. The subscription period ran from June 1 to June 10.

Minimum investment and lock-up period

The minimum subscription is one million shares, valued at $350,000. Subsequent applications must be in multiples of 500,000 shares. All investors will face a 365-day lock-up period from the date of allotment, meaning they cannot sell their shares for one year.

Valuation and legal disclosures

The private placement values Dangote Refinery at an enterprise valuation of $39.1 billion. That places it among Africa's most valuable industrial assets and puts it in competition with oil majors like ExxonMobil.

The company disclosed five active legal cases as of March 3, 2026. Details of the cases were not provided in the summary document, but the disclosure is part of investor due diligence.

Expansion and operational status

Proceeds from the capital raise will support the refinery's expansion program and other corporate purposes. The 650,000-barrels-per-day facility, located in the Lekki Free Zone in Lagos, was built on 2,635 hectares. It has taken over a decade to construct and attracted more than $20 billion in investment.

The refinery is designed to reduce Nigeria's dependence on imported refined petroleum products. However, the company recently reduced operating rates at its key gasoline-producing unit, the Residual Fluid Catalytic Cracking Unit, by about 34% since May 21, according to industry monitor IIR Energy.

This has created uncertainty in Nigeria's fuel market, with marketers increasing imports of cheaper products. The development comes amid rising crude oil prices and global geopolitical tensions.

The private placement is a major test of investor confidence in the refinery's long-term prospects and its ability to deliver returns from one of the world's largest single-train refinery projects.