Dangote Industries Limited has sealed a landmark agreement worth more than $800 million to expand its cement plant in Itori, Ogun State, in what stands as one of the most significant industrial investments in Nigeria’s manufacturing sector this year.
The Memorandum of Understanding, signed with Sinoma International Engineering Co. Ltd., will see the Itori facility’s production capacity double from six million to 12 million metric tonnes annually, a move company officials say is designed to meet surging domestic demand while positioning Nigeria more firmly as a cement exporter to the wider African continent.
The signing ceremony took place in Lagos, bringing together Aliko Dangote, President of the Dangote Group, and Lin Zhong, Chairman of Sinoma, whose firms have a long history of collaboration.
Dangote noted that the partnership has already delivered several world-class cement plants across Africa and described this latest deal as a reflection of both companies’ continued confidence in Nigeria’s economic trajectory.
According to Dangote, the investment feeds directly into the Group’s broader Vision 2030 strategy, which aims to lift the company’s total cement production capacity to somewhere between 90 million and 100 million metric tons per year.
He also linked the timing of the expansion to the federal government’s renewed push toward concrete-based road construction under President Bola Tinubu, framing the project as complementary to that infrastructure agenda while thanking the administration for what he characterized as an improving environment for business investment.
Beyond the headline figures, the expansion carries implications that extend past the factory gates.
Industry watchers point to the potential ripple effects: new jobs during both construction and operation, increased foreign exchange earnings as export volumes rise, and a strengthened competitive position for Nigerian cement in regional markets that have historically relied on imports.
For Ogun State, host to the Itori facility, the project represents a vote of confidence that could draw further downstream investment from logistics and haulage to packaging and ancillary manufacturing as the plant scales up to serve both local and cross-border demand.
Once construction is completed, the expanded facility is expected to reinforce Nigeria’s standing as one of Africa’s dominant cement producers, with Dangote Cement continuing to anchor much of that growth.
No firm completion timeline was disclosed following the signing, and the agreement remains, for now, a memorandum of understanding of the framework from which detailed engineering, financing, and construction contracts will need to follow before ground is broken.
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW
Dangote and Sinoma have committed over $800 million to double Itori’s cement output from 6 to 12 million tonnes a year, a bet on Nigeria’s growing demand and export potential that, once built, could cement the country’s place as one of Africa’s top cement producers while creating jobs and foreign exchange along the way.
