Dangote Industries Limited says it has signed some deals with the government of Togo to produce fertiliser and build a cement factory in the country.
The firm said the cement factory would cost about $60m with an annual capacity of 1.5 million tonnes to meet both local and neighbouring countries’ demand.
It added that the plant, to be located in Lome, would use clinker from Togo and Nigeria.
In a statement on Sunday, the firm said the construction of the Lome plant would start in the first quarter of 2020, with its inauguration expected before the end of the year.
The deal is expected to be Dangote’s first push into Togo, setting the firm up for competition against Germany’s HeidelbergCement, which operates three companies as well as Fortia Cement in the country.
On the fertiliser production, it said with over two billion tonnes of phosphate reserves, Togo had been one of the leading producers in Africa.
It stated that by partnering the Dangote Group, the country planned to benefit from the expertise and investment capacity of Africa’s largest industrial group.
According to the firm, Togo’s vast phosphate resources are mostly exported in their raw form and Dangote’s project will process some to make fertiliser in-country and export to the region.
The Togolese government projected a cost of $2bn for the project, the statement added.
“The project, in line with the second pillar of the Togo National Development Plan, would enable the production of more than one million tonnes of fertilisers derived from phosphates once completed,” the statement said.