Dangote Refinery IPO better than selling PVC for N10,000, Rewane says

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Economist Bismarck Rewane has urged Nigerians to invest in the Dangote Refinery Initial Public Offering rather than seek quick financial gains by selling their Permanent Voter Cards.

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Rewane said the IPO could encourage millions of Nigerians, particularly low-income earners, to move from short-term consumption to long-term investment by becoming shareholders in one of the country’s biggest companies.

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He said, “You are better off with your N5,000 share than selling your PVC for N10,000 or N15,000 and consuming it,” Rewane said.

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“This is an investment which will translate itself, in a matter of 2 to 3 years, to something as much as almost, I think, almost 300,000 naira. The numbers will be out, and you can see in the prospectus.

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“So the projections are very clear. Another thing we have to know is that the amount of revenue generated as reported by the Dangote refinery for the half-year, if you analyse it, is far in excess of the Nigerian budget.

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“Therefore, you have a revenue and a revenue profile of a company whose revenue is far in excess of the Nigerian budget for the Nigerian state, and that is only one of the entities that are part of the Dangote Group.”

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According to the economist, the planned scale of the IPO could also mark a major development for Nigeria’s capital market if it succeeds in attracting about 10 million investors.

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“The reality is that targeting 10 million investors is also a milestone,” Rewane said.

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He said such participation would give the refinery an exceptionally large shareholder base and bring more Nigerians into the investment process.

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“If you can get 10 million shareholders to participate in the IPO, the Dangote Refinery will have the largest number of shareholders in the world,” he said.

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Rewane said the significance of the IPO went beyond the number of people who would buy shares, arguing that widespread participation could help build a stronger investment culture in the country.

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He contrasted investment with gambling and betting, where people risk money largely on uncertain outcomes.

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“The difference between a gambling act, a lottery act and an investment is that in one case, you are investing based on known parameters; in the other one, you are actually just gambling and taking a chance,” Rewane said.

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The economist described broader participation in the IPO as a form of economic democratisation, saying it would allow Nigerians to participate directly in the growth of a major domestic company.

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He also said the refinery had the potential to become a major petroleum refining and marketing hub serving West and Central Africa.

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Rewane argued that such growth could benefit investors through dividends and profits while also generating more revenue for the government.

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“So it is a compelling investment opportunity which puts revenue and profits and dividends into the pockets of consumers and investors, puts a lot of tax revenue in the pockets of the government,” he said.

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