• Afreximbank underwrites $2.5bn in a $4bn syndicated loan to consolidate Dangote refinery's construction debt, with no new cash injected into operations.
• At full 650,000 bpd capacity since February 2026, the refinery covers 44% of Nigeria's gasoline demand and exports to five African countries.
• NNPC raised crude allocations to seven cargoes for May 2026, still below the 13-15 required, forcing continued reliance on costlier international markets.

The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) announced on Tuesday that it had subscribed $2.5 billion to a $4 billion syndicated term loan for Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE, Africa’s largest refinery.

The five-year facility brings together several financing lines used during the construction and start-up of the $20 billion Lekki complex, the bank said. Access Bank is co-arranging the transaction alongside Afreximbank.

The operation does not inject new liquidity into the refinery. It primarily aims to consolidate existing financing, optimise the capital structure and align the financial arrangement with the refinery's new operational phase and its long-term growth prospects. It is also intended to strengthen the company's financial position, improve balance sheet flexibility and support its role as a strategic supplier of petroleum products to Africa and the global market.

"When Dangote exports refined fuel to Ghana, Togo or Tanzania, it means Africa is supplying itself. We finance this trade because it is at the core of our mandate," said Afreximbank President Dr. George Elombi.

The transaction comes as the Lekki refinery, operated by Dangote Group, reached its full capacity of 650,000 barrels per day in February 2026.

In September 2025, it met 44% of Nigeria’s gasoline demand, up from 17% a year earlier, according to data from the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority.

According to reports by local sources in January 2026, the refinery exports refined products to Ghana, Cameroon, Togo, Tanzania and Angola.

Concentrated risk

The refinery’s rise comes amid persistent tensions on global energy markets, where supply disruptions in the Red Sea and crude price volatility have driven up the cost of refined product imports for most African countries.

For Afreximbank, whose loan portfolio stood at $28 billion at end-September 2025, the Dangote refinery is both its largest client and a cornerstone of its strategy to promote intra-African trade in petroleum products.

In 2025, the bank launched a $3 billion revolving financing programme to support trade in refined products between African refineries and buyers across the continent.

The sustainability of this supply chain depends on structurally insufficient crude supply.

NNPC signed a two-year supply agreement with the refinery in August 2025 under the naira-for-crude initiative.

Per statements from refinery executives, the plant receives only five cargoes per month, well below the 13 to 15 needed for full operations, forcing it to buy crude on international markets at prevailing prices.

On March 31, 2026, NNPC said it would increase allocations to seven cargoes for May, but the increase, reported by Reuters, still falls short of the refinery’s operational needs.

In 2025, it imported $3.74 billion worth of crude, according to balance of payments data from the Central Bank of Nigeria.

The planned listing of the refinery on the Nigerian Exchange in 2026, with an offering of around 10% of the capital, marks the next decisive step. The structure, which is under review by Nigerian regulators, would allow investors to subscribe in naira while receiving dividends in dollars — backed by export revenues estimated at $6.4 billion per year, according to BusinessDay. Its approval would determine the refinery’s ability to diversify its financing sources beyond Afreximbank.

Idriss Linge