Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, is set to construct a major deep seaport in Olokola, Ogun State, as part of the next phase of his group’s industrial expansion, according to a new Bloomberg report.
The proposed Atlantic seaport, which lies approximately 100 kilometres from Dangote’s fertilizer and oil refinery plants in Lagos, will serve as a strategic logistics hub, linking the group’s export operations and rivaling existing port infrastructure in Lagos, including the Chinese-funded Lekki Deep Sea Port.
Vice President of the Dangote Group, Devakumar Edwin, disclosed that paperwork for the project was submitted in late June. He described it as an initiative that would “support the rapid growth” of the conglomerate’s industrial empire and encourage private-sector-led development in Nigeria’s maritime sector.
“We want to build the biggest, deepest port in Nigeria,” Edwin said, noting that the port will significantly ease the export of products such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) and urea, while boosting access to import and logistics services.
The new port also signals Dangote’s return to the Olokola site, where earlier plans for a refinery and fertilizer complex were shelved due to disagreements with local authorities. Those tensions have reportedly been resolved under the current administration.
As part of the company’s broader energy ambitions, Dangote also intends to export LNG from Lagos. This will involve building pipelines from the Niger Delta to bring in natural gas — a move Edwin said could eventually surpass the volume handled by Nigeria LNG Ltd., the country’s current leading LNG exporter.
“We know where there is a lot of gas, so [we’ll] run a pipeline all through and then bring it to the shore,” Edwin explained.
Currently, Dangote sources gas from the Niger Delta for his fertilizer plant, where it is used to produce hydrogen for ammonia, a key ingredient in fertilizer production.
Additionally, the Dangote Group is preparing to begin domestic fuel distribution from August using a fleet of 4,000 gas-powered trucks. The plan has faced some criticism over fears of market monopoly, which Dangote has strongly denied.
Aliko Dangote is valued at $27.8 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, and has industrial investments across cement, sugar, energy, and petrochemicals sectors in Africa.
