Economy: Dangote aims for African cement throne by 2026

62 million tonnes is is the production target set by Aliko Dangote to make his group Africa’s number one cement producer, ahead of Egypt, by 2026. An ambitious industrial gamble announced on May 1st in Lagos.

In 2024, Egypt will dominate with 55.1 million tonnes. Dangote Cement is still behind, with 53 million, but the Nigerian group is banking on optimizing its plants in Nigeria and Central Africa, which are currently under-utilized.

Example: Dangote’s 4 Nigerian factories, capable of producing 35.2 million tonnes, produced only 17.7 million tonnes in 2024. The aim is therefore to “make better use of what already exists”, without necessarily opening new sites.

Cameroon is a case in point: the Douala plant, almost at full capacity, produced 1.4 million tonnes for a capacity of 1.5 million.

But the strategy doesn’t stop there: Dangote wants to capitalize on the group’s diversification – fertilizers, sugar, oil – to increase its sales from 25 to 30 billion dollars in one year, despite trade tensions with the United States. Washington is now imposing 14% tariffs on Nigerian urea, a partial hindrance for a group that exports 37% to the US.

With assets estimated at $27.5 billion, Dangote Industries remains one of the 20 most profitable groups in the world. It remains to be seen whether this colossal industrial ambition will translate into lasting gains.

source: EcoMatin