Aliko Dangote has secured $2.5bn in investment for the expansion of his Lagos mega-refinery, marking Africa’s largest publicly disclosed private equity placement. The funding, which includes backing from the Africa Finance Corporation and an investment vehicle facilitated by the African Export-Import Bank, will support Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals' agenda to significantly grow capacity.

The refinery plans to increase its output from 650,000 barrels per day to 1.4mn b/d by 2028, aiming to become one of the world's largest facilities. The investment round was 3.7 times oversubscribed and precedes a highly anticipated listing on the Lagos Stock Exchange, projected at a valuation of $40bn.

This expansion underscores a commitment to developing domestic refining capacity and reducing Africa’s reliance on imported refined products. The refinery, which cost $20bn to build, has become crucial for diversifying energy supply chains and ensuring Nigeria no longer needs to import most of its petrol and diesel.