Aliko Dangote, Africa\u2019s richest person and the President of Dangote Group,
\none of the continent\u2019s largest conglomerates is estimated to have added a
\nwhopping $9.2 billion during 2013 outgone year. He remains the
\n30th-richest person in the world, according to Bloomberg, a global
\nfinancial intelligence.<\/p>\n
While the widely respected media corroborated Forbes Africa, reporting
\nthat the cement tycoon made the biggest profit in the African continent in
\n2013, however, it reported that Bill Gates, the founder and chairman of
\nRedmond, Washington-based Microsoft Corp., was the year\u2019s biggest gainer
\nworldwide as the 58-year-old tycoon\u2019s fortune increased by $15.8 billion
\nto $78.5 billion<\/p>\n
The richest people on the planet got even richer in 2013, adding $524
\nbillion to their collective net worth, according to the Bloomberg
\nBillionaires Index, a daily ranking of the world\u2019s 300 wealthiest
\nindividuals.<\/p>\n
The aggregate net worth of the world\u2019s top billionaires stood at $3.7
\ntrillion at the market close on December 31, according to the ranking. The
\nbiggest gains came in the technology industry, which soared 28 percent
\nduring the year. Of the 300 people who appeared on the final ranking of
\n2013, only 70 registered a net loss for the 12-month period. .<\/p>\n
Dangote, it stated recorded his highest gain from Dangote Cement, which is
\nthe most capitalized company on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, with a 74 per
\ncent run-up over the last 365 days.<\/p>\n
However, according to FORBES\u2019s most recent statistics, he is now worth
\n$22.9 billion, up from $12.8 billion at the end of December 2012.<\/p>\n
While still aggressively expanding his cement business within the African
\ncontinent, the foremost industrialist made a bold move late last year when
\nhe ventured into petroleum refining business when he signed a jumbo term
\nloan agreement of $3.30 billion with a consortium of both international
\nand local banks for the purpose of constructing the biggest Petroleum Oil
\nRefinery & Petrochemical\/ Fertilizer Plants in Nigeria.<\/p>\n
The plants, which will cost a total of $9 billion will generate up to
\n9,500 direct and 25,000 indirect jobs, in addition to reducing current
\nvolumes of refined fuel imports by around 50 per cent and effectively
\nstopping the importation of fertilizer. The USD9billion project will be
\nfinanced by USD3billion equity and USD6billiion loan capital.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The loan agreement signing between Dangote Group and a consortium of 12
\nlocal and international banks was the first tranche of loans secured by
\nDangote, comprising USD3.3billion. This first facility was jointly
\nco-ordinated by Standard Chartered Bank as the Global Coordinator, and
\nNigeria\u2019s Guaranty Trust Bank PLC as the Local Coordinator.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
With the refining capacity expected to reach 400,000 barrels of crude oil
\nper day and producing a variety of refined fuel products from local crude
\nresources, Nigeria will cut its current volumes of imported fuel products
\nby a massive 50 per cent. The 2.8 million tons of urea will be channeled
\ninto growing the local agriculture sector which is essential in producing
\nhealthy crops and promoting Nigeria and West Africa\u2019s agricultural
\ndevelopment.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The Petrochemical plant will also produce Polypropylene which is a common
\ncomponent of most plastic and fabric products, for example it is used in
\nvarious forms of packaging, ropes and agro-sacks.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Dangote had explained that: \u201cThis plant will further entrench Africa\u2019s
\nrole on the global map as not only a valued contributor for natural
\nresources, but also a competent manufacturer of refined products and
\nfertilizer.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a result, several African nations will be less reliant on importing
\nfuel and fertilizer from foreign markets, reducing the negative impact of
\nnegotiating terms within increasingly turbulent international markets.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
According to him the refinery will further create some thousands of job
\nopportunities both direct and indirect and will trickle down to every
\nfamily and reduce unemployment in the country.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
He stated that the Dangote Group would be ready to delve into sectors that
\nare capable of generating the much needed jobs and urged other investors
\nto have abiding faith in the nation\u2019s economy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Aliko Dangote, Africa\u2019s richest person and the President of Dangote Group, one of the continent\u2019s largest conglomerates is estimated to have added a whopping $9.2 billion during 2013 outgone year.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":21442,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21441","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exclusive"],"yoast_head":"\n