President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has disclosed that the company turned down efforts by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited to raise its 7.25 per cent equity holding in the Dangote Petroleum Refinery.

The PUNCH reported that Dangote made the revelation during an interview with Nicolai Tangen, the chief executive officer of the Norwegian Sovereign Wealth Fund.

He noted that plans are underway to list the refinery publicly in order to broaden ownership and allow more Nigerians to acquire shares.

The billionaire industrialist also pointed to policy instability and the risk of civil unrest as key challenges facing businesses.

He stressed that consistent government policies are essential for sustained industrial development.

“Actually, if there were civil wars, which is not in the offing at all.

“The other biggest risk is government inconsistencies in policies, and we are addressing that one because if you look at our refinery, the national oil company already owns 7.25 per cent, and they are trying to buy more. We are the ones that said no; we want to now spread it and have everybody be part of it.”

Dangote further noted that investors in the group’s future ventures would receive dividends in foreign currency, citing the export-driven nature of the business.

“What we are announcing is that when you invest in any of our businesses going forward, in cement or in the refinery, in petrochemicals, or in fertiliser, we guarantee to pay you a dividend in dollars because we are very well into exports. 80 per cent of our revenue will be in dollars,” he said.

He explained that major financial institutions, including Afreximbank, Africa Finance Corporation, Zenith Bank, Access Bank, UBA, Standard Bank of South Africa and Standard Chartered Bank, supported the refinery project.

Dangote also reflected on his personal investment choices, saying he divested from foreign real estate to focus entirely on business operations in Nigeria.

“When I decided to go into the industry, you know what I did? I sold all my properties in the US. I had two houses in the US, big mansions, and I had a house in the UK. I wanted to really sit in Nigeria and concentrate.

“You know, sometimes when you own a holiday home anywhere, you have to create that time to go and use that property. So, now my life is very simple. Wherever I go, I use hotels; I pay. When I leave, nobody will call me and say I have a burst pipe or something is wrong. So I’m committed to what I do, and I just don’t do things; I always create a vision.

“It’s just like now; we created a vision for 2030. So, I know I have a target to meet. I just don’t do business. All my businesses are targeted,” he said.

Explaining his investment philosophy, Dangote added that his strategy is guided by domestic needs and import substitution.

“I first of all look at what we need as a people. What is it that we are supposed to be producing, and what are we importing? So we do what you call ‘backward integration’. We produce what the people need, and we are now producing things that, when you wake up as a human being every morning, you must use part of what we produce,” he said.