President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has announced plans to transition into maritime and logistics, seeking to develop Africa’s largest and deepest seaport at the Olokola Free Trade Zone in Ogun State with discussions already underway with the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy.
Alhaji Dangote disclosed the plan on Monday at the opening of the Mid-Year Session of the Board of Directors of the Port Management Association of West and Central Africa (PMAWCA) in Victoria Island Lagos.
He said the company has formally applied to start work on the deep seaport project. The site is located near its fertiliser and petrochemical facilities and is about 100 kilometres away from the Dangote fertiliser plant and oil refinery complex in Lagos.
The port is expected to expand export capacity for fertiliser, petrochemicals, and liquefied natural gas. Currently, the group exports urea and fertiliser through a privately constructed jetty that also receives heavy equipment for the refinery.
Once completed, the facility will consolidate the group’s logistics and export operations and position it as a major player in Nigeria’s maritime and logistics sector. It will also compete with existing ports in Lagos, including the Lekki Deep Sea Port, which began operations in 2023.
Dangote noted that while the company has historically been Nigeria’s largest user of port services, the group is now actively investing in providing port and logistics services to streamline its export operations and boost regional trade.
The development aligns with the group’s push to scale industrial output and streamline supply chains across West and Central Africa.
