Aliko Dangote, President of Dangote Group, has unveiled plans to build Nigeria’s largest seaport at the Olokola Free Trade Zone in Ogun State. He made this announcement on Monday during a courtesy visit to the state governor.
“We earlier on abandoned our vision of investing in the Olokola Free Trade Zone (OKFTZ), but because of Governor Dapo Abiodun’s policies and investor-friendly environment. I want to say we are back and are going to work with the government and return to Olokola and plans are underway to construct the largest port in the country,” he said.
Africa’s richest man Dangote also revealed that his company has resumed construction of a 6-million-metric-ton-per-annum cement factory in Itori, located in Ewekoro Local Government Area. The project is expected to be completed by November 2026.
He expressed regret that the nearly $800 million Itori cement factory should have been completed and commissioned earlier but was delayed due to opposition from former Governor Ibikunle Amosun.
According to Dangote, he was in the state to update the governor on the ongoing two new lines of a 6 million metric tons per annum(Mta) cement plant in Itori sitting on 533 hectares of land.
He noted that Ogun State is already home to the 12-million-metric-ton-per-annum Dangote Cement Plant in Ibese.
With the completion of the Itori cement project, the state’s total production capacity will reach 18 million metric tons per annum, making it the highest cement-producing state or region in Africa.
Dangote driving Nigeria’s self-sufficiency across industries
Highlighting a streak of achievements in making Nigeria self-sufficient across multiple industries, Dangote stated that his company’s investment in cement manufacturing had eliminated the need for imports, transforming Nigeria into a cement-exporting nation.
He noted that the same success had been replicated in fertilizer production, with Nigeria now not only meeting domestic demand but also exporting surplus, generating valuable foreign exchange for the country.
Dangote also referenced his 650,000-barrel-per-day petroleum refinery, which has begun exporting refined crude products while significantly reducing fuel prices domestically.
