Dangote cement plans $1B expansion across Africa by 2030

Africa’s largest cement producer has a plan, a partner, and a $1 billion budget to match.

Dangote Cement Plc announced this week that it will spend $1 billion to expand production capacity across seven African countries over the next four years, with a target of reaching 80 million tonnes per year by 2030. That would represent a 45% jump from current output levels and would cement, quite literally, the company’s grip on the continent’s construction supply chain.

The company signed a memorandum of understanding with China’s Sinoma International Engineering in Lagos to get it done. The agreement covers 12 projects spanning Nigeria, Ethiopia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Sierra Leone and Cameroon. Sinoma will oversee new plant construction, brownfield expansions at existing facilities, and modernization work intended to reduce costs and strengthen distribution networks.

Within Nigeria alone, the scope is significant. New and expanded facilities are planned at Itori, Apapa, Lekki, Port Harcourt, Onne and a new integrated production line in Northern Nigeria that will include a satellite grinding unit.

Aliko Dangote, founder and chairman of Dangote Group, called the projects critical to meeting surging demand across Africa’s infrastructure sector and described them as core to the group’s broader Vision 2030 strategy, which targets $100 billion in annual revenue across all its industrial businesses.

Chief Executive Officer Arvind Pathak said the Sinoma agreement reflects the company’s resolve to close supply gaps that have kept parts of the continent reliant on expensive cement imports from outside Africa. “We are committed to making Africa self-sufficient in cement production,” he said, adding that the expansion would strengthen Dangote Cement’s competitiveness in key markets while creating jobs and supporting infrastructure delivery.

The announcement lands on the back of a record financial year. Dangote Cement posted a profit after tax of more than N1 trillion in 2025, the first time in the company’s history it has crossed that threshold. Revenue climbed 20.3% to N4.31 trillion, driven primarily by strong Nigerian demand and an aggressive export push. EBITDA rose 43.4% to N1.98 trillion. Pathak described 2025 as “a landmark year” in results commentary released alongside the figures.

Exports have become an increasingly important part of the company’s strategy. Cement and clinker shipments from Nigeria rose 18.6% in 2025, with 34 ships dispatched to Ghana and Cameroon. The company has set a target of 10 million combined export tonnes by 2030, using its terminals at Apapa and Onne as the springboard for regional supply.

The expansion plan also comes with an energy component. Dangote Cement has expanded its gas supply agreements with Nigerian Gas Marketing Limited and NNPC Gas Infrastructure Company to fuel higher production volumes and support the adoption of compressed natural gas across its transport and operations network. The shift is expected to cut fuel costs and reduce carbon emissions.

The company currently operates plants in 11 African countries and holds total installed capacity of 55 million tonnes per year following the commissioning of a 3 million tonne grinding plant in Cote d’Ivoire last year.

Getting to 80 million tonnes by 2030 is an ambitious ask, but the fundamentals working in Dangote Cement’s favor are hard to argue with. Africa’s urban population is growing faster than any other region on earth. Governments across the continent are pushing roads, bridges, housing and industrial parks. The raw demand for construction material is not slowing down, and Dangote, with its scale, its distribution networks and now a fresh $1 billion commitment, is positioning itself to be the primary supplier when that demand arrives.