AFRICA: NIGERIA: Dangote’s New Cement Factory Shores up Local Production

Cement importation in Nigeria may begin to wind down soon, as the management of Dangote cement has concluded arrangements to finally launch its new 6 million metric tonnes per annum capacity cement plant in Ibese, Ogun State.

Dangote Group revealed that production at Gboko plant would soon be boosted, as the company has almost concluded its expansion process in the plant to hit 4 million metric tonnes per annum, as against its current capacity of 3.5 million metric tonnes.

The Group added that with four million tonnes in Gboko, about 10 million in Obajana, six million in Ibese, the Dangote cement production is expected to hit about 20 million tonnes by the end of this year, as against the country’s demand of 17 million metric tonnes of cement per annum.

“By implication, what Dangote Group alone will be producing will be far more than the country’s demand, giving room for the Group to commence exportation of cement to other African countries,” Dangote Group said.

The Group stated that by having cement plant in 14 different African countries, Dangote Cement has emerged as the African’s best cement manufacturing company.

“Among others, Dangote has its presence in the following African countries: Zambia, Tanzania, South Africa, Congo (Brazzaville), Ethiopia, Cameroun (Grinding), Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Ghana, Senegal among others,” the Group said.

The move, according to the company, was to ensure that African remains self-sufficient in cement production and in making the products easily available and at highly affordable costs to the end users, saying that the expansion of the Group would surely be to the benefits of the shareholders.

Special Adviser to the President of Dangote group, Mr. Aliko Dangote, Mr. Joseph Makoju, recently said the increased production would lead to more revenue for the company and the shareholders would be better for it.

According to him, “Very soon, the new lines in Obajana and Ibeshe will commence full production. By then the local capacity and output will be far more than the local demand of cement and that will set the pace for exportation of our products. This will lead to increased products, more revenue for the company and better returns for the shareholders.”

In all these, he said the shareholders were the ultimate beneficiaries as they had bought into a company with a solid future that would surely benefit them through robust returns on investments policy.