By Toma Imirhe
Ghana’s Tema Oil Refinery, Côte d’Ivoire’s SIR, Egypt’s Mostorod Refinery and Angola’s Sonangol could become beneficiaries of growing investor appetite for African petroleum infrastructure, as governments and refinery owners seek new sources of long-term capital.
The successful completion of the initial public offering (IPO) of Nigeria’s Dangote Petroleum Refinery, which attracted subscriptions estimated at approximately three times the shares initially offered, could mark a turning point in the financing of Africa’s downstream petroleum industry. Beyond the immediate financial success for its promoter, Aliko Dangote, the offering has demonstrated the potential of African capital markets to mobilize substantial domestic and international investment for large-scale industrial infrastructure.
The Dangote IPO, which closed on October 27, 2026, sought to raise approximately 2.15 trillion naira (US$1.6 billion) through the sale of 4.1 billion ordinary shares at 525 naira each. However, Reuters reported that applications had reached approximately 6.4 trillion naira, equivalent to US$4.78 billion, representing around three times the original offer.
The offer attracted participation from more than two million investors, with applications reportedly originating from all 54 African countries and approximately 120 countries worldwide. The strong response has raised the prospect of the company exercising its oversubscription allocation option, potentially increasing the amount raised beyond the original target by up to 30% which could push total financing raised up to US$2.1 billion.
For Dangote, whose refinery represents an investment of approximately US$20 billion, the IPO is not simply an exercise in raising additional money. It is also an opportunity to broaden ownership of one of Africa’s most strategically important industrial assets, deepen the Nigerian capital market and bring ordinary African investors into the ownership of a major petroleum enterprise.
The refinery, which has an installed capacity of approximately 700,000 barrels per day, is already transforming Nigeria’s petroleum-products market and expanding its export presence. Its promoter intends to use additional financing to support an ambitious expansion programme that could eventually double its capacity to 1.4 million barrels daily.
The implications extend well beyond Nigeria. With several African countries seeking to reduce dependence on imported refined petroleum products, expand domestic processing capacity and modernize ageing refineries, Dangote’s fundraising success offers an important demonstration of the possibilities of equity-market financing.
Tema Oil Refinery: Ghana considers following the Nigerian example
One of the most immediate indications that Dangote’s success could influence refinery financing strategies elsewhere on the continent has emerged in Ghana, where the Government is considering an IPO of the state-owned Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE).
The proposal was disclosed by TOR Managing Director, Edmond Kombat, in October 2026, as part of a broader strategy to attract investment and raise additional capital for the refinery’s recovery, rehabilitation and expansion. He explained that a stock-market listing would enable Ghanaian institutional investors and other members of the investing public to acquire equity in the enterprise, while providing the refinery with an alternative source of long-term financing.
The proposed IPO comes against the background of an ambitious four-year transformation programme covering 2026–2029. TOR intends to increase its existing processing capacity through a combination of brownfield expansion and construction of a new refinery.
The immediate objective is to raise throughput from approximately 28,000 barrels daily to between 45,000 and 55,000 barrels through the F-61 tie-in project. The medium-term ambition is to reach 100,000 barrels daily, while the longer-term programme envisages a brownfield expansion of the existing facility and a new greenfield refinery, bringing total national refining capacity at Tema to approximately 200,000 barrels daily.
These ambitions will require considerable financial resources, technical expertise and long-term investment commitments. An IPO could help mobilize some of the necessary funding without placing the entire burden on government borrowing or relying exclusively on commercial bank loans.
Importantly, Ghana has a potentially substantial domestic institutional investment base. Pension funds, insurance companies, fund managers and individual investors could become shareholders in a strategically important industrial enterprise. The listing would also provide an opportunity for the public to participate in the financial benefits of domestic petroleum processing.
However, TOR’s IPO would need to be preceded by a credible financial restructuring, independent valuation, transparent disclosure of existing liabilities and a convincing demonstration that its rehabilitation programme can deliver commercially sustainable operations.
The experience of Dangote suggests that investors can be attracted to petroleum infrastructure, but they must be persuaded that the underlying business can generate reliable cash flows and competitive returns.
Côte d’Ivoire’s SIR: An established regional refining champion
Another possible candidate for an eventual public offering is the Société Ivoirienne de Raffinage (SIR), Côte d’Ivoire’s principal petroleum refinery and one of the most established downstream petroleum enterprises in Francophone West Africa. Regional analysts and West African debt market advisors have repeatedly flagged SIR for a potential partial privatization float to fund its multi-million dollar environmental and low-sulfur fuel upgrades through a listing on the francophone West African regional stock market, the Bourse Regionale des Valeurs Mobilieres.
Established in 1962, SIR occupies an important position in Côte d’Ivoire’s domestic petroleum supply chain and exports refined products to neighbouring countries. Its ownership structure is already diversified, making the possibility of a public offering particularly interesting.
According to the company’s published shareholder information, Petroci holds 45.74 per cent, Sahara LMT 27.33 per cent, Angola’s Sonangol 20 per cent, Burkina Faso 5.39 per cent and the Ivorian state 1.54 per cent.
This existing multi-stakeholder ownership could provide a foundation for a carefully structured IPO, should the shareholders decide to broaden participation and raise additional capital through the regional securities market.
SIR is already undertaking significant investments to modernise its operations and improve the quality of its products.
In October 2025, the Ivorian Government announced the commencement of construction of a major gasoil hydrodesulphurisation complex, initially estimated at CFA545 billion. The project is intended to enable the refinery to produce ultra-low-sulphur diesel containing less than 10 parts per million of sulphur, meeting the more demanding AFRI 6 specifications.
The African Development Bank subsequently approved €200 million in financing for the Clean Air project in July 2026, while other financing arrangements involve regional and domestic financial institutions.
These investments illustrate both SIR’s financing requirements and the potential attractiveness of its business to long-term investors.
An IPO could provide additional equity capital for future modernization, capacity expansion, environmental compliance and regional market development. It could also give investors across the eight-member West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) access to an established industrial enterprise through the regional BRVM securities exchange.
Nevertheless, there is no publicly confirmed SIR IPO programme at present. The possibility should therefore be understood as a potential financing option rather than an announced corporate decision.
The company’s existing shareholders would also have to agree on the proportion of shares to be offered, the valuation and the extent to which public investors should participate in strategic decisions.
Egypt’s Mostorod: A possible private-sector listing
Egypt offers another interesting case through the Egyptian Refining Company (ERC), which operates the major Mostorod refinery near Cairo. The Egyptian Refining Company (ERC) has long been earmarked by its parent private equity firm, Qalaa Holdings, for an eventual public carve-out or IPO on the Egyptian Exchange once macro conditions stabilize
Unlike Tema Oil Refinery and SIR, Mostorod is a privately led public-private partnership rather than a conventional state-owned refinery. It was developed through an approximately US$4.3 billion investment, with Qalaa Holdings playing a leading role alongside international and Gulf investors, development finance institutions and export-credit agencies.
The refinery produces approximately 4.7 million tonnes of refined petroleum products annually, including 2.3 million tonnes of Euro V diesel and substantial volumes of jet fuel. Its production helps replace imported petroleum products and strengthens Egypt’s energy security.
Mostorod’s financial position has also been evolving. Qalaa Holdings reported in September 2026 that ERC had fully repaid its senior debt in June, improving its capacity to distribute dividends. Qalaa also announced plans to increase its effective indirect ownership in the refinery from 13 per cent to 27.1 per cent through a related holding-company transaction.
The improving financial position could make an eventual public offering more attractive, particularly if the shareholders seek to realize part of their investment while retaining a significant interest in the business.
Egypt has, in fact, been pursuing a wider programme of petroleum-sector listings. In June 2026, Petroleum Minister Karim Badawi announced the first phase of a programme involving Enppi, ELAB and PMS, with additional companies expected to follow. The initiative seeks to broaden ownership, improve governance and attract private investment through the Egyptian Exchange.
However, ERC has not been specifically identified as an approved IPO candidate. Its possible listing would require agreement among its private-sector shareholders and relevant government stakeholders.
Nevertheless, its established production capacity, strategic importance and improving debt position could make it a potentially attractive candidate for future capital-market financing.
Angola’s Sonangol: A potentially transformational national oil-company IPO
Perhaps the most consequential potential petroleum-sector listing after Dangote’s offering is that of Angola’s state-owned oil company, Sonangol.
Unlike the other examples, Sonangol’s proposed IPO is not exclusively about raising capital for a refinery. It represents a wider restructuring and partial privatisation initiative intended to attract private investment into Angola’s petroleum industry, improve corporate governance and reduce the state’s direct ownership of commercial assets.
The proposal, initially announced for 2022, envisaged selling approximately 30 per cent of Sonangol’s shares to domestic and international investors.
Although implementation has repeatedly been delayed, the company has continued preparing for the transaction. In February 2026, board member Baltazar Miguel confirmed that preparations were continuing, citing the establishment of an investor-relations office and the completion of debt-sale transactions as part of the preparatory work. He explained that Sonangol had been removed from Angola’s latest privatization programme because insufficient time remained to complete the offering, rather than because the IPO had been abandoned.
More recently, in October 2026, another board member, Osvaldo Inácio, reiterated the company’s commitment to the proposed listing, emphasizing the importance of ensuring that investors would be satisfied with the future performance of their shares. No definitive flotation date has yet been announced.
Sonangol’s importance to the African refining industry makes its proposed listing particularly significant.
The company is closely associated with Angola’s existing Luanda Refinery and is also involved in developing the country’s wider refining infrastructure. It has interests in the Cabinda refinery through a partnership with private investors, while its downstream ambitions include major projects such as the proposed Lobito refinery.
Indeed, Sonangol’s existing 10 per cent participation in the Cabinda refinery demonstrates how it is already using partnerships to mobilise external investment for downstream infrastructure. The Cabinda project, developed with Gemcorp, represents an investment of approximately US$1.3 billion and is designed to reach processing capacity of 60,000 barrels daily.
The company also has a 20 per cent shareholding in Côte d’Ivoire’s SIR, providing it with exposure to another major African refining operation.
An eventual Sonangol IPO could therefore offer investors exposure to a diversified petroleum enterprise with interests across exploration, production, refining, storage and distribution.
The proceeds could strengthen the company’s financial capacity to participate in major infrastructure projects, including refinery rehabilitation and expansion, while reducing dependence on government financing.
For Angola, a successful offering would also provide an opportunity to deepen the country’s domestic capital market and attract international institutional investors into its petroleum industry.
A new financing model for Africa’s petroleum industry?
Taken together, these developments suggest that Dangote’s IPO could encourage a reassessment of how African petroleum infrastructure is financed.
Over the years, African refineries have struggled with operational inefficiencies, subsidized pricing models, and heavy legacy debts, making them unappealing for public equity markets.
Historically, refinery investments across the continent have therefore depended heavily on government budgets, sovereign borrowing, bilateral financing, development finance institutions and commercial bank loans. These sources remain important, but they have limitations, particularly for projects requiring billions of dollars and long construction and operational horizons.
However, the massive cross-border success of the Dangote IPO—which drew retail and institutional capital from all 54 African countries—has established a new blueprint. Regional governments are now looking to equity markets to shift the financial burden of these capital-intensive downstream assets away from state budgets
Equity-market financing offers a complementary alternative. Unlike conventional borrowing, an IPO does not create an obligation to repay principal or service interest at predetermined intervals. It can strengthen a company’s capital base, improve its borrowing capacity and provide a mechanism for investors to participate in future earnings.
There are also broader economic advantages. Successful listings could deepen African stock exchanges, mobilize domestic pension and insurance funds, encourage household investment and reduce the dependence of strategic infrastructure projects on foreign creditors.
Citigroup’s Sub-Saharan Africa banking head, Akin Dawodu, has similarly argued that the enthusiasm generated by Dangote’s offering could help deepen African capital markets, mobilize domestic savings for infrastructure and reduce dependence on foreign financing.
However, the Dangote experience should not be interpreted as a guarantee that every African refinery will attract comparable investor enthusiasm.
Refineries must demonstrate commercially viable operations, reliable crude supply, competitive processing margins, effective management and credible long-term expansion plans. Government-controlled enterprises must additionally address political interference, accumulated liabilities, transparency and shareholder protection.
There is also the question of valuation. Investors will want independent assessments of refinery assets, realistic earnings forecasts and clarity about how IPO proceeds will be used. Minority shareholders must receive meaningful protection and access to reliable corporate information.
Most importantly, governments and existing controlling shareholders must be prepared to accept the accountability that accompanies public ownership.
The central lesson from Dangote is therefore not simply that African investors have money available to finance large industrial enterprises. It is that they can be persuaded to commit substantial resources when offered an opportunity to participate in businesses with credible commercial prospects and strategic economic significance.
For Tema, SIR, Mostorod and Sonangol, the challenge will be to translate that demonstrated appetite into properly structured investment opportunities.
If they succeed, Dangote’s landmark offering could become more than Africa’s biggest refinery IPO. It could mark the beginning of a new era in which African capital markets become important financiers of the continent’s industrial transformation.
