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Dangote: Cementing Nigeria’s Path to Energy Independence

Abiodun Alade
After decades of heavy reliance on imported fuel, Nigeria — Africa’s most populous nation and one of its largest oil producers — has finally rewritten its energy story. The era of being the continent’s largest importer of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) is over. At the heart of this monumental shift is the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, a $20 billion behemoth that has roared into life, promising to transform not only Nigeria’s fuel landscape but also the future of African energy.
This landmark moment echoes a previous turning point in Nigeria’s industrial journey. When Dangote Cement ramped up local production, the country’s dependence on imported cement drastically declined. Within a few years, Nigeria transitioned from a major importer to a net exporter of cement, stemming capital flight and boosting domestic employment. That same blueprint — ambitious investment, local value addition, and strategic vision — is now unfolding in the oil and gas sector.
Nigeria’s construction sector was once highly vulnerable to foreign supply shocks and foreign exchange drain. Despite abundant raw materials and a burgeoning construction industry, insufficient local production capacity left Nigeria heavily reliant on imported cement. At one point, the country’s import volumes rivalled those of the United States. In fact, as of 2022, Nigeria ranked third among the world’s largest importers of cement, behind the United States and Spain. Between 2008 and 2011, Nigeria imported over 24.59 million metric tonnes of cement, imposing a huge burden on its balance of payments.
Every bag of cement used to build Nigeria’s roads, buildings and bridges came with a foreign price tag — literally. Importers dominated the market, and the country’s infrastructure ambitions were often constrained by erratic supply and soaring costs. While demand hovered below 8 million metric tonnes, domestic production between 1999 and 2002 was only around 1.7 million metric tonnes.
However, with the advent of Dangote Cement and the expansion of its local production capacity in the early 2010s, Nigeria’s industrial landscape was rewritten. Within a few years, the nation shifted from being a net importer to a net exporter of cement, supplying neighbouring countries and strengthening local supply chains.
Dangote Cement Plc is Sub-Saharan Africa’s largest cement producer, with an installed capacity of 52.0 million tonnes per annum across ten African countries. The company operates a fully integrated ‘quarry-to-customer’ business model, encompassing manufacturing, sales and distribution. In its home market of Nigeria alone, it boasts a production capacity of 35.3 million tonnes per annum.
Nigeria’s infrastructure boom over the past decade owes much to a reliable and affordable supply of cement, courtesy of Dangote Cement’s strategic investments. Starting with its Obajana plant — now one of the largest cement plants in the world — Dangote scaled up production dramatically. This investment significantly reduced Nigeria’s reliance on imports, saved billions in foreign exchange, created thousands of jobs, and catalysed growth in ancillary sectors such as logistics and construction.
The impact has reverberated beyond Nigeria’s borders. Today, the country exports cement across West Africa, repositioning itself from a dependent market to a regional industrial powerhouse. This transformation is a testament to visionary private-sector leadership combined with supportive government policies — a lesson now being mirrored in Nigeria’s energy sector.
According to a recent Bloomberg report, Nigeria’s PMS import volumes have sharply declined since early 2025. Once firmly atop the import charts, Nigeria has ceded that position to South Africa, where operational refining capacity has diminished. Executive Director at energy consultancy CITAC, Elitsa Georgieva, observed said that that Nigerian imports are dropping due to Dangote’s continued operation. Meanwhile, Nigeria imported 3.1 million tonnes of refined fuel in Q1 2025, a figure expected to fall further as more marketers turn to the Dangote refinery instead of importing.
For a country that exports crude but historically lacked the capacity to refine it domestically, this turnaround is profound. The implications are both economic and geopolitical. With local refining capacity increasing, Nigeria is not merely reducing its reliance on imported fuel, it is reclaiming a measure of economic sovereignty. Pressure on foreign exchange reserves eases as fewer dollars are needed for imports. Jobs are created, value chains are localised, and for the average Nigerian, this has translated into more stable pump prices and fuel availability.
The journey to this moment was not without its challenges. The Dangote Refinery project — hailed as Africa’s largest of its kind — went significantly over budget and beyond its original timeline. Initially projected to cost $12 billion, the final outlay reportedly reached $20 billion. Yet, in the end, vision triumphed over adversity, with Aliko Dangote deserving credit for his steadfast commitment amid ongoing hurdles.
This vision extends beyond Nigeria. Countries like Uganda and Mozambique are eyeing similar ambitions, hoping to replicate Nigeria’s refining resurgence. However, as Bloomberg rightly notes, this is no easy feat, even for a conglomerate of Dangote’s scale. Refineries are capital-intensive, technically complex, and politically sensitive. Yet Nigeria’s experience demonstrates that with strategic alignment between public and private sectors, success is possible.
Further cementing this transformation, Nigeria introduced the “naira-for-crude” deal in October 2024. Under this policy, Dangote sells refined petroleum products in naira to its local partners, creating a closed-loop system that strengthens the local currency and shields the downstream sector from foreign exchange volatility. It is a bold step in redefining how oil wealth is managed and circulated within the economy.
As Nigeria retreats from the import market, South Africa has emerged as sub-Saharan Africa’s largest importer of refined fuel, bringing in 4.2 million tonnes in the first quarter of 2025 alone. Traders such as Glencore and Vitol are reportedly capitalising on this opportunity, with firms like Gunvor competing for strategic retail assets such as Shell’s stations.
Yet Nigeria’s story is not about which country imports the most fuel. It is about choosing to invest in long-term solutions over short-term fixes. It is about the courage to build domestically rather than send dollars abroad. It is about a private-sector giant stepping in where public institutions faltered, rewriting the narrative. It is about ensuring Nigeria no longer exports jobs while importing poverty.
The Dangote Petroleum Refinery is more than just a refinery — it is a symbol. A symbol of what is possible when ambition meets action. A symbol of how Africa’s largest economy can rise above old dependencies. From cement to fuel, the Dangote Group has once again positioned itself as a transformative force in Nigeria’s industrialisation story.
With refined products now flowing from Lekki instead of foreign ports, and with the naira playing a new role in oil transactions, Nigeria has turned the corner — not just economically, but symbolically. And this time, the fuel powering the change is homegrown.
Abiodun, a communications strategist writes from Lagos