Economy
Dangote to Meet 50% of Market Demand for Refined Sugar
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
In the next four years, Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc intends to meet 50 per cent of the current local market demand for refined sugar with the production of 700,000 metric tonnes.
At the company’s 18th Annual General Meeting (AGM) held on Tuesday in Lagos, the chairman of Dangote Sugar, Mr Aliko Dangote, said this goal would be achieved from locally grown sugarcane through its Backward Integration Programme (BIP).
He further stated that the sugar 10-year sugar development plan to produce 1.5 million MT of sugar per annum from locally grown sugarcane remains a germane roadmap to the attainment of the firm’s objectives, which he said align with the federal government’s policy guidelines.
“Our focus is on achieving the revised targets set for DSR Numan Operations, Dangote Adamawa Sugar Limited, and Nasarawa Sugar Company Limited, while we are hopeful that the Taraba State Government will resolve the community payment issues that have led to the stoppage of activities at the Dangote Taraba Sugar Limited, Lau/Tau project,” he said.
The businessman noted that in the 2023 financial year, the organisation, despite the challenges we were faced with, significantly scaled up investment in the BIPs with the ongoing expansion of the DSR Numan factory refining capacity from 3,000TCD to 9,800TCD year-end.
“The factory will be increased with an additional 5,200TCD to 15,000 TCD (tonnes of cane crushed per day) eventually to meet the need given the massive land development activities also going on at the site. The aim is to achieve 24,200 hectares in total by the year 2029,” Mr Dangote stated.
He also emphasised that despite the adverse impact on the business environment by the continuous increase in the inflationary trend, lack of liquidity and FX to fund the company’s equipment import among others for the backward integration projects, concerted efforts are ongoing to secure the needed funds for the development of the Nasarawa Sugar Company Limited project at Tunga in Awe Local Government Area of the state.
“This will enable the company to put in place the needed infrastructure for the eventual commencement of full-scale production and ensure that the Dangote Sugar Backward Integration ‘Sugar for Nigeria Project’ is achieved. In the end, over $700 million investment would be committed to the Backward Integration Programme,” he added.
On outlook, he stated that “achievement of the goals of the Sugar Backward Integration Master Plan remains our focus.”
“This will go a long way in delivering the anticipated benefits, especially in FX savings and cushioning its impact on our operations amongst other benefits to the company, all stakeholders, and the nation,” he emphasised.
On his part, the chief executive of Dangote Sugar, Mr Ravindra Singhvi, said, “Despite these challenges, we are resolute and focused on the delivery of our business targets in the medium to long term.”
“As we continue to navigate through the scarcity and high cost of foreign exchange, escalating costs of raw materials amongst others, our focus is to enhance the effectiveness of our supply chain processes, optimise cost, improve our operational efficiencies and delivery on our Sugar for Nigeria backward integration project,” he stated.
Mr Singhvi said, “The target is to produce a minimum of 1.5MT refined sugar annually from locally produced sugarcane at our integrated sugar production estates, which is expected to alleviate some pressure on costs and our demand for foreign currency.
“Achievement of a sustainable business remains one of our key strategies and concerted efforts were made towards sustaining the achievements we have recorded in the past,”
By Dipo Olowookere
About 0.04 per cent was recovered on Friday from the loss recorded by the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) the previous due to profit-taking.
Yesterday, investors were in the market with renewed vigour, mopping up stocks trading at relatively cheaper prices.
According to data, the insurance counter gained 0.41 per cent, the banking sector appreciated by 0.38 per cent, and the consumer goods index grew by 0.14 per cent.
The gains achieved by these three sectors were enough to lift Customs Street at the close of business despite the 0.26 per cent decline printed by the industrial goods segment and the 0.14 per cent loss suffered by the energy industry. The commodity counter was flat during the session.
A total of 43 equities gained weight on the last trading day of this week, while 26 equities shed weight, indicating a positive market breadth index and strong investor sentiment.
Red Star Express increased its share price by 10.00 per cent to N13.20, NCR Nigeria grew by 9.97 per cent to N128.55, SCOA Nigeria inflated by 9.96 per cent to N14.90, Omatek appreciated by 9.94 per cent to N1.77, and Deap Capital expanded by 9.85 per cent to N4.46.
On the flip side, McNichols decreased by 8.81 per cent to N6.00, Legend Internet crumbled by 7.56 per cent to N5.50, Cornerstone Insurance crashed by 6.48 per cent to N6.35, C&I Leasing contracted by 6.29 per cent to N8.20, and Austin Laz slipped by 5.78 per cent to N3.75.
Yesterday, 539.9 million shares valued at N16.7 billion were transacted in 48,023 deals versus the 1.0 billion shares worth N31.6 billion executed in 51,227 deals in the preceding day, implying a shrink in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 46.01 per cent, 47.15 per cent, and 6.26 per cent apiece.
Zenith Bank was the most active for the day with 54.6 million stocks sold for N3.8 billion, Jaiz Bank traded 41.5 million units worth N359.4 million, Secure Electronic Technology transacted 37.7 million units valued at N39.2 million, Access Holdings exchanged 30.5 million units for N699.2 million, and Lasaco Assurance transacted 27.2 million units worth N68.3 million.
When the market closed for the day, the All-Share Index (ASI) went up by 72.21 points to 166,129.50 points from 166,057.29 points and the market capitalisation gained N31 billion to N106.354 trillion from N106.323 trillion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was a positive ending for the Naira this week after it further appreciated against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Friday, January 16 by N1.33 or 0.09 per cent to sell for N1,417.95/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,419.28/$1.
The domestic currency also gained N2.41 against the Euro in the official market to close at N1,647.51/€1 versus the preceding session’s closing price of N1,649.92/€1, however, it suffered a N7.97 loss against the Pound Sterling in the same market window to trade at N1,901.32/£1, in contrast to Thursday’s closing price of N1,893.35/£1.
In the same vein, the Nigerian Naira depleted against the Dollar at the GTBank FX counter by N2 to quote at N1,427/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,425/$1, but strengthened against the greenback at the black market yesterday by N5 to settle at N1,485/$1 versus the N1,490/$1 it was exchanged a day earlier.
Improved supply conditions helped keep the market within range as exporters’ and importers’ inflows in addition to non-bank corporate supply enhanced liquidity as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) made no visible intervention.
Stronger external inflows from foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) and improving current account dynamics, continue to align with structural support in the wider economy.
Nigeria has seen projections of a stronger economic or gross domestic product (GDP) growth and lower inflation in 2026, with these forecasts citing improved macroeconomic fundamentals and reform impacts.
As for the cryptocurrency market, it was mixed following selloff in precious metals and lower US stocks appeared to be denting crypto sentiment.
Gold and silver, both of which also enjoyed big rallies earlier this week, tumbled 1.2 per cent and 5 per cent, respectively while key US stock indexes — the Nasdaq, S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average — all reversed from early gains to modest losses in Friday trade.
Dogecoin (DOGE) shrank by 2.2 per cent to $0.1370, Ripple (XRP) slipped by 0.8 per cent to $2.05, Ethereum (ETH) went down by 0.7 per cent to $3,228.56, and Bitcoin (BTC) slumped by 0.6 per cent to $95,086.80.
Conversely, Litecoin (LTC) appreciated by 3.2 per cent to $74.48, Solana (SOL) rose by 0.4 per cent to $143.70, Cardano (ADA) jumped by 0.2 per cent to $0.3942, and Binance Coin (BNB) increased by 0.1 per cent to $935.88, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 each.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Oil prices settled higher amid lingering worries about a possible US military strike against Iran, a decision that may still occur over the weekend.
Brent crude settled at $64.13 a barrel after going up by 37 cents or 0.58 per cent and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude finished at $59.44 a barrel after it gained 25 cents or 0.42 per cent.
The US Navy’s aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln was expected to arrive in the Persian Gulf next week after operating in the South China Sea.
Market analysts noted that it doesn’t seem likely anything will happen soon. However, the weekends have become the perfect time for actions so as not offset the markets.
The market had risen after protests flared up in Iran and US President Donald Trump signalled the potential for military strikes, but lost over 4 per cent on Thursday as the American president said Iran’s crackdown on the protesters was easing, allaying concerns of possible military action that could disrupt oil supplies.
Iran produces approximately 3.2 million barrels per day, accounting for roughly 4 per cent of global crude production, so it was not a coincidence that markets rallied sharply through Tuesday and Wednesday as President Trump canceled meetings with Iranian officials and posted that “help is on its way” to Iranian protesters, raising fears of potential US military strikes that sent prices surging toward multi-month highs.
Weighing against those fears are potential supply increases from Venezuela.
The Trump administration is exploring plans to swap heavy Venezuelan crude for US medium sour barrels that can actually go straight into Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) caverns, since not all all oil belongs in the reserve.
According to Reuters, the Department of Energy is considering moving Venezuelan heavy crude into commercial storage at the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port, while US producers deliver medium sour crude into the SPR in exchange.
Analysts expect higher supply this year, potentially creating a ceiling for the geopolitical risk premium on prices.
Some investors covered short positions ahead of the three-day Martin Luther King holiday weekend in the US.
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