President of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, says he is prepared to reduce his ownership of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery to as low as 25 per cent as more Africans participate in the company’s ownership.
Dangote spoke during a fireside chat at the Nairobi Securities Exchange in Kenya, where he discussed the group’s planned investments across Africa and the proposed 700,000-barrel-per-day refinery in Lamu.
The comments came amid a legal dispute over the land earmarked for the Kenyan refinery. The Malindi Environment and Land Court has ordered that the existing status quo be maintained until a hearing scheduled for October 14. The case was filed by 133 residents who claim the land is ancestral property.
Dangote said he remained confident that the project would proceed despite the legal challenge, noting that his businesses had faced similar disputes in other African countries.
The planned Lamu refinery is projected to cost between $15bn and $16bn and is expected to be completed by 2030. Dangote said the project could require more than 60,000 workers and that the group intended to train local personnel.
He also discussed efforts to expand public ownership of the Nigerian refinery, saying the group was willing to sell more shares if demand from African investors remained strong.
Dangote said his stake could eventually fall to between 20 and 25 per cent, allowing more Africans to own shares in the company. He added that shareholders would have a role in determining the company’s leadership through corporate governance processes.
