Aliko Dangote, Africa's richest man, is seeking to raise at least $1.6bn from retail investors across the continent by listing shares in his refinery business, marking Africa's largest-ever initial public offering. Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals is offering 4.1bn shares at 525 naira ($0.40) each, valuing the business at $49bn, with a minimum purchase of 10 shares aimed at opening the offer to small investors. Retail investors will receive two free shares provided they hold them for the required period, in what company executives hope will foster an investment culture in Nigeria.

The Dangote petroleum refinery plant in Lagos began operations in 2024. Dangote defied sceptics by constructing the refinery over a decade on swampland outside Lagos, transforming Nigeria from a huge importer of refined products to an exporter. David Bird, a former Shell executive who now heads Dangote's refinery and petrochemicals division, defended the valuation of the 700,000-barrel-a-day refinery, the world's biggest of its type, that cost some $20bn to build.

He said investors were participating in a 'growth journey', with refining capacity expected to double by the end of the decade. A prospectus is due to be released when the IPO opens on September 14. Funds from the IPO will also be used to build 'tank farms' from which to deliver refined products around the continent, the first of which is planned for Namibia.

Dangote also wants to build another 700,000 b/d refinery in Kenya to serve east Africa, but that operation would be separate from the Lagos refinery business.