Each year, the African Energy Industry’s “African Energy Person of the Year” award celebrates individuals who have positively influenced Africa’s energy sector by facilitating projects that strengthen energy security, African development, energy additions, free markets, limited government, economic resilience, the prosperity of families, local content and improve African energy infrastructure. The African Energy Chamber is pleased to present the 2026 award to Aliko Dangote.
This is a fitting honor for the Nigerian businessman and industrialist who has invested billions in Africa to strengthen energy security, build infrastructure, create jobs, reduce import dependence, support regional development, and promote African-led solutions to energy poverty.
A Career Devoted to African Growth
After his studies in business at Al-Azhar University in Cairo, Dangote ventured into a wide variety of industries, with enterprises in cement, sugar, salt, flour, and fertilizer. From a small trading business, he has built one of Africa’s largest conglomerates: Dangote Group, a multinational industrial powerhouse that develops African technical expertise, enhances domestic supply chains, and boosts industrial capacity — all resulting in greater opportunities for economic diversification.
Dangote has long recognized one of Africa’s biggest economic challenges: the need among African countries to export raw materials and import finished products. He adopted a long-term mission to help solve this dilemma by building manufacturing capacity, logistics systems, energy infrastructure, raw material processing, and transportation networks that will move more production and value creation inside Africa.
Under the direction of this transformative business leader, the Dangote Group is one of the most ambitious industrial conglomerates ever built in Africa. What makes the organization unique is not just its size, but its strategy: Instead of focusing on trading or resource extraction, Dangote has invested heavily in the physical infrastructure needed for industrialization across Africa.
But it’s when he turned his sights to hydrocarbons that Aliko Dangote’s story really comes alive.
Breaking the Import Dependence Cycle
In recent years, Dangote has gained global attention for the Dangote Petroleum Refinery in Lekki near Lagos, Nigeria. The world’s largest single-train refinery, the facility has increased its processing capacity from its original 650,000 barrels per day (bpd) to approximately 700,000 bpd. Integrated with petrochemical, storage, marine and logistics infrastructure, the refinery produces gasoline, diesel, aviation fuel and other petroleum products for Nigerian and international markets.
This is not simply a refinery. It is a macroeconomic game-changer for Nigeria and a transformative project for African energy security.
For years, Nigeria’s dependence on imported refined products exposed the country to fuel shortages, subsidy costs and foreign exchange pressures. The Dangote Refinery has fundamentally altered that trajectory by enabling domestic refining at unprecedented scale and establishing Nigeria as an increasingly important exporter of refined petroleum products. Nigeria’s seaborne petroleum product imports fell from nearly 400,000 bpd in 2023 to less than 130,000 bpd in the second quarter of 2026, while exports to Europe reached approximately 130,000 bpd during the quarter.
The refinery also represents something even bigger for Africa: proof that the continent can build and operate world-scale industrial infrastructure.
At a time when geopolitical instability involving Iran and uncertainty around the Strait of Hormuz have disrupted global fuel supply chains, the Dangote Refinery has emerged as an increasingly important alternative source of refined products. Its fuels now reach markets across Africa and beyond, strengthening Nigeria’s position in international petroleum trade and demonstrating the strategic value of African refining capacity during periods of global supply disruption.
Many critics doubted that the refinery would ever be completed.
Dangote faced financing challenges, infrastructure bottlenecks, technical complexity, political uncertainty and currency volatility. Despite these hurdles, his determination to develop the project ultimately brought one of Africa’s largest-ever industrial investments into operation.
Today, the refinery stands as a symbol of African industrial ambition and confidence. And its next chapter could be even more consequential.
In September 2026, Dangote Petroleum Refinery launched an initial public offering (IPO) that is set to become the largest in African history. The offer comprises 4.1 billion ordinary shares at ₦525 each and aims to raise approximately ₦2.15 trillion – around $1.6 billion – while opening ownership of the refinery to public investors. The offer opened on September 14 and is scheduled to close on October 13, with shares expected to begin trading on the Nigerian Exchange later in the year.
The IPO forms part of an even larger ambition. Dangote is advancing a $14.3 billion expansion program that would double the refinery’s processing capacity from 700,000 bpd to 1.4 million bpd by 2029. Basic engineering for the expansion has been completed, almost all detailed engineering work is finished, most equipment has been ordered and major construction contracts are being awarded.
At 1.4 million bpd, the expanded complex would rank among the largest refining facilities globally, reinforcing Nigeria’s emergence as a major refining and petrochemical hub. Dangote has also indicated that, following the expansion, the company intends to pursue an international secondary listing, potentially in the United States.
At the same time, Dangote’s ambitions are extending beyond Nigeria. The group is pursuing new refining and logistics investments elsewhere on the continent, including plans for a major refinery in East Africa. Together, these investments point toward a wider ambition: building African refining capacity at a scale capable of reducing import dependence, strengthening regional supply chains and positioning the continent as a more significant participant in global refined-product markets.
Sharing the Wealth
Dangote’s positive influence on African industry and economic development cannot be overstated. But he is more than a businessman or industrialist. He is also dedicated to helping his country and uplifting his fellow Nigerians. Among his philanthropic efforts, he leads the Aliko Dangote Foundation (ADF), which supports health initiatives, education, disaster relief, poverty reduction, and nutrition programs across Africa.
Established with the mission of reducing poverty and improving quality of life through strategic philanthropy and sustainable development initiatives, ADF is one of the largest private charitable foundations in Africa. Dangote himself has publicly committed a large portion of his wealth to philanthropy, including signing the Giving Pledge that encourages billionaires to donate most of their fortunes.
ADF became internationally known for supporting Nigeria’s campaign to eradicate polio. It partnered with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, UNICEF, the World Health Organization, and various Nigerian government agencies in this work. It’s no coincidence that Nigeria was declared free of wild polio in 2020, after years of vaccination campaigns.
The foundation also supports nutrition initiatives targeting children, pregnant women, and vulnerable communities. Agricultural programs to strengthen poverty reduction and employment have included farmer support, fertilizer access, agricultural training, and rural development efforts.
ADF regularly donates large sums and relief materials to affected communities across Nigeria to provide emergency assistance during crises such as flooding, food shortages, displacement, and disease outbreaks. For instance, the foundation helped coordinate private-sector responses through the Coalition Against COVID-19 (CACOVID), contributing emergency funding for medical supplies, isolation centers, and food assistance.
The foundation, under Dangote’s leadership, also promotes programs designed to create sustainable livelihoods, including small business support, agricultural initiatives, women’s empowerment projects, and entrepreneurship development. Programs focus on helping communities move from aid dependency toward long-term economic participation. By collaborating with universities and educational institutions to strengthen research and learning capacity, Dangote is improving educational access and workforce readiness, especially for young Nigerians, through scholarships, school infrastructure, university programs, and vocational training.
ADF often works with African governments, international NGOs, UN agencies, community organizations, and global philanthropic institutions. Its partnership model is crucial because many African development challenges require coordination between public and private sectors. Its influence extends beyond charity into public health, economic policy, and development strategy across the region.
Aliko Dangote is a visionary who has invested his time, resources, and unwavering belief in Africa’s potential to build industries, strengthen energy security, and create lasting economic opportunity across the continent. The African Energy Chamber looks forward to seeing the impact of his efforts continue to unfold in the years ahead.
Distributed by APO
