Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc has commenced a N485.88 billion rights issue in one of the largest equity fundraising exercises on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) in recent years, as the company intensifies efforts to strengthen its balance sheet, expand production capacity, and accelerate backward integration within Nigeria’s sugar industry.
The company is offering 8.098 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each to existing shareholders at N60 per share on the basis of two new ordinary shares for every three shares already held. The offer officially opened on May 25, 2026, and is scheduled to close on June 24, 2026, while the qualification date for shareholders was fixed at April 20, 2026.
The rights issue, which received shareholder approval during the company’s 20th Annual General Meeting, remains subject to final regulatory clearances and market processes.
Market analysts say the capital raise represents a major strategic move by the sugar refining giant as it seeks to reposition itself for long-term growth amid rising pressure on manufacturers from foreign exchange volatility, import dependence, inflationary pressures, and increasing operating costs within Nigeria’s industrial sector.
The fundraising is also expected to support the company’s long-standing backward integration strategy aimed at significantly reducing Nigeria’s reliance on imported raw sugar through large-scale local sugarcane cultivation and processing.
Speaking on the development, Arnold Ekpe, chairman of Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc, said the successful approval of the rights issue provides the company with stronger financial capacity to pursue its growth objectives and improve profitability over the long term.
“With shareholder backing for the rights issue, we are in a strong position to bolster our balance sheet, setting the stage for future growth and profitability,” Ekpe stated.
He explained that the company’s “Sugar for Nigeria” backward integration programme remains central to Dangote Sugar’s long-term strategic direction and broader ambitions within the domestic sugar value chain.
According to Ekpe, the initiative is designed not only to increase domestic sugar production but also to reduce the country’s exposure to foreign exchange pressures associated with sugar imports while simultaneously creating jobs, supporting rural economic development, and strengthening agricultural value chains through the company’s out-grower scheme.
“Our objective is to produce 1.5 million metric tonnes of sugar annually from domestically cultivated sugarcane,” Ekpe said.
“This involves developing approximately 45,000 hectares, with 2.7 million tonnes of cane earmarked for Numan and 3.35 million tonnes for Nasarawa,” he added.
Ekpe acknowledged the scale of the investment required, noting that substantial capital expenditure would be needed over the next five years to fully execute the company’s expansion plans across its sugar production locations.
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