Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, expands Ethiopia fertiliser bet to over $4 billion

Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, has raised the planned investment in a fertiliser complex in Ethiopia to more than $4 billion, up from the $2.5 billion initially disclosed last year, as the Nigerian industrialist deepens his push into agricultural inputs across the continent.

The update was disclosed by the Dangote Group in a statement on X on Sunday, following a site visit by Dangote and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to the project location. The visit underscored the strategic importance of the project for Ethiopia, which is seeking to reduce its dependence on imported fertilisers while accelerating industrial development.

Integrated industrial expansion

At the centre of the expansion is a planned urea production facility with a capacity of three million metric tons per year. The plant remains one of the largest industrial projects under development in the Horn of Africa and forms part of Dangote’s broader ambition to reshape Africa’s fertiliser supply chain.

But unlike the original blueprint, the revised project scope is significantly wider. Dangote Group said the complex will now include a 110-kilometre natural gas pipeline to supply feedstock, a 120-megawatt power plant to ensure energy self-sufficiency, a polypropylene packaging facility, and a 2-million-tonne-capacity NPK (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) blending plant.

The expansion signals a shift from a single-product fertiliser plant into a fully integrated agro-industrial hub, capable not only of producing urea but also of supporting downstream blending, packaging, and logistics. Industry analysts often view such integration as critical in reducing production bottlenecks and improving export competitiveness.

Reducing import dependence

Ethiopia remains heavily reliant on fertiliser imports, spending more than $1 billion annually to support its agriculture sector, which employs the majority of its workforce. The government has repeatedly identified fertiliser security as central to its food security strategy, given the country’s exposure to global price swings and foreign exchange constraints.

Ownership and investment structure 

The businessman, whose net worth is estimated by Bloomberg at $36.8billion, has repeatedly argued that Africa’s reliance on imported fertiliser represents a structural inefficiency that domestic production can address at scale.

Under the original agreement, ownership of the project is split between Dangote Group and Ethiopian Investment Holdings, with Dangote holding a 60% stake and the Ethiopian state entity holding 40%. The revised investment size has not altered the equity structure, according to people familiar with the arrangement, though financing details for the expanded scope have not been fully disclosed.

The Ethiopian project builds on his existing fertiliser operations in Nigeria, where the Lagos-based facility is already among the largest urea production plants in the world. That plant, located in Ibeju Lekki, has a design capacity of three million metric tons annually and has been positioned as a regional supply hub for West and Central Africa, where agricultural productivity is constrained by high fertiliser costs.

Strategic expansion in Africa
If completed on schedule of the original projected completion within roughly 40 months, the fertiliser complex is expected to significantly alter Ethiopia’s agricultural input landscape within the next few years.

For now, the expanded scope signals both ambition and complexity: a move from a single fertiliser plant into a vertically integrated industrial ecosystem spanning gas supply, power generation, fertiliser production, and packaging.