By: OrePulse

Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals opened Africa's largest oil refinery to public ownership on Monday, launching an initial public offering on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) to raise 2.15 trillion naira, or roughly $1.62 billion.

At 525 naira per unit, the sale covers 4.1 billion newly issued ordinary shares. Subscriptions opened September 14 and are scheduled to close October 13. The offer is open to retail, institutional, and eligible African investors seeking a stake in what is described as the continent's largest refinery, with a minimum subscription of 10 shares, valued at 5,250 naira.

The listing marks the first time a refinery has been offered for public subscription on the NGX in the exchange's 66-year history, and ranks among the largest capital-raising exercises undertaken on the bourse. Founder Aliko Dangote, president of Dangote Industries Limited, formally opened the offer in a ceremony at the exchange, calling it the "People's IPO" and describing it as an effort to broaden public participation in owning his companies.

"We will list every company that we operate," Dangote said at the listing ceremony, signalling that the refinery offering is intended as the first in a series of public listings across the Dangote Group.

Proceeds from the share sale will go toward the refinery's expansion plans, part of a broader Dangote Group strategy that has earmarked approximately $46 billion for group-wide expansion through 2030. Dangote said he expects the group's overall market capitalisation to reach at least $350 billion by 2030, based on a 10x price-to-earnings ratio.

He also said the company plans to list other Dangote Group businesses on the exchange in the coming years and that the refinery itself could pursue an international stock exchange listing within three to four years, describing Nigeria's capital market as the foundation for future global listings.

The IPO is being watched closely as a test of investor appetite for African downstream energy assets, given the scale of the offer and the breadth of eligible participants, which extends beyond Nigeria to other African markets. Analysts and investors will be watching subscription levels over the coming weeks as an indicator of retail demand for large industrial listings on the exchange.

Dangote's remarks positioned the refinery listing as the opening step in a wider capital-markets strategy for the group. He did not name specific companies or provide a timeline for additional listings beyond the refinery's own prospective international listing in three to four years.

Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu attended the listing ceremony at the NGX trading floor in Lagos, joined by relatives of Aliko Dangote, among them two of his daughters — underscoring the event's significance as a milestone for both the company and Nigeria's capital markets.