Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, has crossed a new financial milestone, with his wealth soaring to $30.3 billion as of October 24, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Bloomberg data shows that Dangote’s fortune rose by $2.25 billion this week, pushing the Nigerian businessman to 75th position on the global billionaires’ ranking and once again making him the only African featured among the world’s top 100 wealthiest individuals.
The surge in Dangote’s net worth comes just two weeks after the official opening of the Dangote Cement plant in Attingué, Côte d’Ivoire, a major milestone in the group’s ongoing expansion across Africa.
Located on a 50-hectare site within the Attingué industrial zone, the new facility boasts a production capacity of 3 million tonnes per year, making it one of the largest cement plants outside Nigeria under the Dangote Group portfolio.
The plant’s inauguration adds to the conglomerate’s growing presence across the continent, strengthening its hold on Africa’s construction materials market.
Refinery Momentum Fuels Billionaire’s Wealth
Back home, Dangote’s wealth has also been boosted by steady progress at his 650,000-barrel-per-day (bpd) refinery in Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos, which began operations in May 2023.
The $19 billion complex, spread across 2,635 hectares in the Lekki Free Trade Zone, began diesel production in January 2024, while petrol output officially commenced on September 3, following delays linked to crude oil supply challenges.
During a media briefing on October 22, Dangote revealed plans to list the refinery on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX), with an initial public offering (IPO) of 5 to 10 percent of its shares within the next year, mirroring earlier listings of Dangote Cement and Dangote Sugar Refinery.
“We don’t intend to keep more than 65–70 percent of the refinery’s shares,” he said, noting that the sale would depend on market appetite and investor interest.
Dangote also confirmed that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), which reduced its stake in the refinery from 20 percent to 7.2 percent, could raise its ownership in the next growth phase.
Refinery Expansion and Industry Impact
The billionaire industrialist disclosed plans to scale up refinery capacity to 1.4 million barrels per day, a move that would make the facility larger than the world’s biggest refinery, the 1.36 million bpd Jamnagar refinery in India.
In June, the refinery unveiled a nationwide fuel distribution scheme, acquiring 4,000 compressed natural gas (CNG)-powered tankers to strengthen logistics and support domestic supply.
However, the initiative has faced pushback from major downstream operators. The Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) warned in June that the refinery’s expansion and distribution plans could create a quasi-monopoly and threaten jobs in the retail fuel sector.
Africa’s Industrial Powerhouse
Dangote’s growing empire now spans cement, sugar, salt, fertilizer, and petroleum refining, reinforcing his status as Africa’s most influential industrialist.
Despite challenges in Nigeria’s business environment, Dangote has continued to invest aggressively across multiple sectors, a strategy that has steadily increased his wealth and global influence.
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