*Africa's richest man piling in to oil and gas

* Billionaire targets 2019 for oil refinery launch

* Dangote plans London listing by end of 2017



LAGOS, June 24 (Reuters) - Africa's richest man, Aliko Dangote, plans to launch Nigeria's first private crude oil refinery by 2019 while almost doubling his cement production on the continent by adding plants in eight countries as he shrugs off a regional economic downturn.

Dangote told Reuters the $12 billion refinery would have a capacity of 650,000 barrels a day, cornering the market in Africa's most populous country, where fuel shortages are a perennial problem.

Until recently, Nigeria was Africa's biggest crude oil producer but it imports 80 percent of its fuel because poor maintenance means its four refineries never reach full output. Its current daily consumption is 260,000 barrels, according to the International Energy Agency.

A slump in commodity prices has hammered Nigeria's economy - along with many others on the continent - and raised the cost of borrowing but Dangote, whose business empire stretches from cement to flour and pasta, is pushing hard into oil and gas.

"It will be ready in the first quarter of 2019," the billionaire founder of Dangote Cement said of the refinery. "Mechanical completion will be end of 2018 but we will start producing in 2019."

Dangote said the plant, which will include a $2 billion fertilizer unit, was being funded through "loans, export credit agencies and our own equity".

Some $3.25 billion had come from local and foreign banks, while the central bank had also chipped in. The IFC, the private sector arm of the World Bank, has lent $150 million.

Dangote also has plans for a gas pipeline through West Africa. Nigeria has the world's ninth largest proven gas reserves, at 187 trillion cubic feet (tcf), but loses half of it to flaring and re-injection.

Despite the new focus on oil and gas, the business magnate said he planned to build cement plants in Cameroon, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal and Zambia by 2018. Another plant will open in Congo Republic by September, he added.

A cement plant in Ivory Coast would triple output to 3 million tonnes, up from an initial target of 1 million, he said, while two new plants in Nigeria would add 6 million tonnes annually.

"As at now, what we have in operation is almost about 45 million tonnes, so we have just another 40 million tonnes to go," he said, affirming an Africa-wide production target of 85 million tonnes a year by 2018.

FX CRISIS

The collapse in oil prices has hit Nigerian companies hard, with many unable to access dollars due to central bank foreign exchange restrictions imposed to prop up the naira.

The worst-affected have gone to the wall or shed large numbers of staff, but a study by Reuters of an 11-week period in March to May showed that Dangote firms managed to secure a healthy share of dollars at the cheap official rate.

Dangote said the $161 million bought during that period from the central bank merely reflected the size of his business and did not represent preferential treatment.

"We have been badly affected like any other company," he said, arguing that operational costs totalled $100 million each month due to recurring expenses such as the purchase of parts for cement production and running a fleet of 9,000 trucks.

"When you are talking about 20 billion dollars worth of projects, what is 161 million? One-hundred-and-sixty-one million dollars is my six weeks' need," he said.

Dangote's sugar refinery in Nigeria had reduced capacity by 15 percent as a result of the dollar crisis. "We ended up owing a lot of dollars," he said.

This week, the central bank removed the peg that has held the naira at the official rate of 197 for the last 16 months, leading to a 30 percent devaluation as the currency traded freely on the interbank market.

Dangote said the decline had pushed up costs.

"This devaluation alone, we have lost over 50 billion naira ($176 million)," he said.

"The gas, which is our main source of power, is priced in dollars. If there is 40 percent devaluation, your price will go up by 40 percent. Every single aspect of the production will go up by that percentage," he said.

Dangote also said he was eyeing a listing on the London stock exchange "within the next year or two". ($1 = 284.1500 naira) (Editing by Ulf Laessing and Ed Cropley)


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OK

Dangote! Smart businessman.

Next level

Dangote please do quick, come and buy Arsenal .

something is not right! when dangote decided to build a refinery in Lagos that when all of a sudden Oil is found in Lagos I smell foul play

This is one businessman i like with his family cause of their lifestyle. Not the one that goes about telling us that her graduation party upon say she no get first class can buy buggati and she walks around the country with armed men because she feels unsafe. Lord do not bless me with money alone but with wisdom and responsible kids

Dangote is wise. Oneday it will be my turn to explore the world. Just building my dream now..
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Insha Allah

hope this would put an end to fuel scarcity....

ok nicd

[size=16pt]What happened to drink your oil while we eat our yam statement eh?[/size]

BEN BRUCE vs MUHAMMADU BUHARI
- one an icon while the other is a dull con.
Really? Can people be this stupid? Dancing and dinning on the fact that Ben Murray-Bruce owes AMCON just 10 billion naira loan and the tyrant Buhari seals his business just to stifle his voice. A man that has had this dream for 36 years and still counting.
Now let me burst your bubbles, even your country NIGERIA owes and takes loans upon loans..................
Even the old frail Buhari took a loan to buy his nomination form. Yes he took a loan to become a president, and he is attacking a man who took loans to expand his empire to employ thousands of Nigerians. Let's don't forget Dangote of the 97% clan owes AMCON more than 200 billion and Ben Bruce of the 5% clan just owes 10 billion. But it's Ben that is being attacked.
Buhari that has never employed anybody, that has always lived off the government from his recommendation days in the army, to governor, to head of state, to minister, started taking pension and also took loan to become president again. SHAMELESS OLD CON.
You can't compare both men, Ben Bruce is a statesman and an icon, Buhari is an opportunist, an empty man and a con who has added no value to Nigeria. Nigeria added value to him and he is indebted to us.
I am Oyinemi Nicholas Endeley, a son from the IZON KINGDOM and I just want to make commonsense.

Copy#.

Hmm, this same oil some people were shouting we don't need!

Success man

I celebrate the grace in Dangote's life and his family's. However, he's one man I can't work for. A Chinese proverb says "if you run alone, you'll never know how fast you're running"

I still await thr day the govt will have sense to lift the benefits of monopoly off him and make the market perfectly elastic so that other businessmen can compete fairly.

#noHate

Awa Oyel!!!!!!

NwaNimo1:
Absurd move - Militants will render him bankrupt!

The question is who are the militants?

This man is very intelligent. I was wondering how he has managed his life to the extent that he has neva been involved in any nonsense scandal. He is very wise.. He can be called the solomon of our time just that he doesn't have '' fleet of wives''.
Another thing i notice in him is that.. While we all have one blokuss ... This man BLOKUSS fit reach 10 ooo. Abi?


Anyways..
DrabeeywasHere

Who wouldn't

With this refinery, Dangote would be among the top ten richest men in the world with time

Ride on sir!

Where are the Flattinos Lagos developer?
They're looking for animals with horn, snails dey show.
lowlife Flattinos developing Lagos on their wildest imagination.

e remain to produce Dangote bombs

Dangote goes where people are scared of going. He has a large heart. Me likey

We should not blame him in future for being in control of our crude oil refining. He is sowing bountifully now, and he will reap bountifully

I have a dream of working as an Engineer in his Obajana Cement plant, and rising through the ranks to the top.
Cement production is fun, I experienced it as an Industrial Trainee at CCNN.
Am happy he is venturing into oil, but not interested in oil due to the mess involved. Cement production is cleaner relatively.

By "mess" am referring to how the host community is affected by the production activities.

I just love this man

Figs:
e remain to produce Dangote bombs

To first be tested in your home town

Nice one........ But I just realised if people are complaining about the Nigerian economy & you don't join in, they"ll attempt to borrow money from you

Issokies

Sasallau:
I have a dream of working as an Engineer in his Obajana Cement plant, and rising through the ranks to the top.
Cement production is fun, I experienced it as an Industrial Trainee at CCNN.
Am happy he is venturing into oil, but not interested in oil due to the mess involved. Cement production is cleaner relatively.

By "mess" am referring to how the host community is affected by the production activities.

Bro, have a dream of having your company.