Billionaire Aliko Dangote says securing land was the biggest obstacle to building his refinery. He has also announced plans to invest $10 billion in power and drop his steel business, according to Al Jazzra.
A costly land problem
Dangote said a bank loan and a refused approval in neighbouring Ogun state forced him to look elsewhere.
“The biggest challenge was getting land for the refinery,” he said. “I took a bank loan, but Ogun’s governor denied me approval, so I paid the bank with interest.”
He then bought land in Lagos for $100 million, only to find it was marshy.
“I bought land in Lagos for $100M, not knowing it was marshy,” he said. “We pumped 65M tons of sand to raise it.”
$10 billion for power
Dangote said he would shift his focus to electricity and scrap his steel business.
“In the next 3–4 years, I am going to invest $10 billion in power, but I am going to cancel my steel business,” he said.
He described the lack of electricity across the continent as unacceptable.
“We Africans shouldn’t allow over 600 million of our people to sleep in darkness,” Dangote said. “This will be a major transformation for Africa.”
