Africa’s richest businessman, Aliko Dangote, has significantly increased the planned investment for his fertiliser plant project in Ethiopia from $2.5 billion to more than $4 billion, marking one of the continent’s largest industrial agriculture investments.
The expanded investment will support the development of additional infrastructure tied to the project, including a 110-kilometre gas pipeline, a 120MW power plant, a polypropylene packaging facility, and a two-million-tonne NPK blending plant. According to the Dangote Group, the project is designed to strengthen fertiliser production capacity in East Africa while reducing dependence on imports.
The fertiliser complex, located in Ethiopia’s Somali region, is expected to produce about three million metric tonnes of urea annually once completed. The project is being developed through a partnership between Dangote Industries Limited and Ethiopian Investment Holdings, with Dangote Group holding a 60% stake.
During a recent visit to the project site in Gode, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed described the development as a strategic investment aimed at boosting food security, supporting local farmers, and driving industrial growth in the country.
The expansion also follows a previously announced $4.2 billion natural gas supply agreement signed between Dangote Industries and China’s GCL Group to power the facility over a 25-year period.
