Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man, has shelved plans to build a new steel plant in Nigeria.
This decision comes amidst accusations from the government that Dangote’s business empire wields too much influence, particularly with the launch of his new oil refinery.
Dangote announced the change of plans on Saturday while addressing journalists at his refinery in Lagos. He stated that the company’s board opted to avoid the steel industry to avoid being “called all sorts of names like monopoly.”
These accusations stem from concerns raised last week by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, NMDPRA.
The agency claimed that Dangote requested a suspension on all diesel and aviation fuel imports, to potentially force other marketers to rely on his refinery. The NMDPRA rejected this request, citing potential monopoly issues and quality concerns.
Dangote had announced earlier this year that once his mega-refinery was fully operational, his next investment venture is to start construction of a 5,000-ton steel plant that will supply the product to the West African market.
But the accusation has caused him to forgo the steel project. The accusation of monopoly is “very disheartening,” Dangote said.
“Monopoly is when you stop people, you block them through legal means. No, it is a level playing field whereby whatever Dangote was given in cement, for example, other people were given because some of them even got more than us,” he added.
“We have never consciously or unconsciously stopped anybody from doing the same business that we are doing. When we first came into cement production, it was only Lafarge that was operating here in Nigeria. Nobody ever called Lafarge a monopoly.”
Dangote has encouraged other Nigerian entrepreneurs to invest in the steel sector as he has pulled the plug on his plan.
“Let other Nigerians also go and do it, because we are not the only Nigerians here, there are even some Nigerians with even more cash,” he said. “They should bring in that money from Dubai and from other parts of the world to come and invest in our own fatherland.”
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