Dangote Cement: Widening its base in Africa

Nigeria-based Dangote Cement has the African continent in its sights catching older European rivals like Lafarge and Heidelberg Cement on the hop – both are now desperately scrambling to invest in African production.

The company’s US$4 billion expansion plan includes the opening of plants in Senegal, South Africa, Zambia, Tanzania, Ethiopia, the Republic of Congo and Kenya in the next 3 – 5 years.

In addition, the company is creating import or grinding facilities in Cameroon, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast), Liberia and Sierra Leone.

In francophone countries, French company Lafarge, is increasingly forced to contend with Nigeria’s cement powerhouse.

South Africa’s PPC is now starting to invest across the continent, too.

In Kenya, Dangote Cement’s arrival has sparked price wars. In Ethiopia, Dangote Cement has announced a doubling of the capacity of its newly opened Mugher plant to 5 million tonnes, with the second line opening in 2017.

Further afield, projects are mooted in Myanmar and Iraq.

Back home, Aliko Dangote’s interests are slowly starting to push into the energy sector, after famously making his billions from non-oil businesses, a rarity in Nigeria.

Source: The Africa Report