By Aduragbemi Omiyale

Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc has been given the approval by shareholders to float a N500 billion rights issue to fund its strategic expansion, especially for its ambitious backward integration projects.

The sugar refiner obtained the authorisation for the fresh capital raise at the 20th Annual General Meeting (AGM) held on Wednesday in Lagos.

The chief executive of the company, Mr Thabo Mabe, informed investors that efforts are being made to secure approximately $1.3 billion needed to fulfil the commitment to achieving a production target of at least 600,000 tonnes annually by 2030.

“We have revised our strategic development plan to meet the 2030 objectives, leveraging the combined potential of DSR Numan Operation and Nasarawa Sugar Company Limited estates.

“This integrated plan targets substantial cane production of around 6.05 million tonnes across 45,000 hectares from both sites,” he said at the meeting.

He boasted that Dangote Sugar remains the sole producer of edible refined granulated white vitamin A fortified sugar, sourced from its backward integration site at Numan.

On his part, the chairman of Dangote Sugar, Mr Arnold Ekpe, said the backward integration initiative, themed Sugar for Nigeria, is a cornerstone of the company’s strategic vision.

“This initiative is expected to drive profitability and value creation, reduce import dependency, mitigate foreign exchange risks, generate employment, and support local farmers through the outgrower scheme.

“Our objective is to produce 1.5 million metric tonnes of sugar annually from domestically cultivated sugarcane. This involves developing approximately 45,000 hectares, with 2.7 million tonnes of cane earmarked for Numan and 3.35 million tonnes for Nasarawa. Achieving this goal requires substantial investments in land development and production capacity over the next five years,” Mr Ekpe added.

“With shareholder backing for the rights issue, we are in a strong position to bolster our balance sheet, setting the stage for future growth and profitability,” he stated.

Commenting on the organisation’s performance last year, he said, despite a challenging economic environment, revenue improved, though profitability was weighed down by a foreign exchange loss of N46.7 billion and additional finance costs totalling N128.6 billion.

However, he affirmed the company’s commitment to sustainable growth, positive impact, and enhanced profitability, saying that “we will continue optimising our operations, pursuing market expansion opportunities, and increasing our presence across the nation. Aligned with the Dangote Group’s Vision 2030, we are dedicated to investing in our workforce and technology to consistently deliver exceptional products and customer satisfaction.”

Speaking at the AGM, a shareholder, Mrs Bisi Bakare, commended Dangote Sugar for having the largest Sugarcane Outgrowers scheme in Nigeria, describing the scheme as a great boost to backward integration and the domestic economy. She also praised the board and management for navigating the company through the harsh operating business environment.

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Nigerian Naira maintained stability against the United States Dollar on Wednesday in the different segments of the foreign exchange (FX).

At the parallel market, the exchange rate of the Naira to the Dollar remained unchanged at N1,380/$1 at midweek, and also traded flat at the GTBank forex counter at N1,371/$1.

Also, the Naira was flat against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) at N1,343.74/$1.

However, it further gained N1.65 against the Pound Sterling in the official market to close at N1,822.92/£1  compared to the previous rate of N1,824.57/£1, and appreciated against the Euro by 43 Kobo to N1,585.08/€1 from N1,585.51/€1.

Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed that interbank turnover at the Nigerian foreign exchange market declined to N114.347 million from N141.315 million.

The relative stability of the official spot rate suggests there is no significant demand for foreign payments.

The outlook for the Naira remains positive despite a sharp decline in foreign reserves, which now stand below $49 billion. Previously, gross external reserves had crossed $50 billion, the highest level seen since 2009.

The amount reduced as the central bank maintained its FX intervention policy to keep the Naira within an acceptable range.

A boost in oil prices and sustained reforms have considerably alleviated liquidity challenges that have long plagued the Nigerian economy, although it has yet to translate to households.

Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market was bullish, driven largely by derivatives and leveraged positioning, with on-chain activity and daily active addresses still trending lower.

Cardano (ADA) rose 4.4 per cent to $0.2497, Ripple (XRP) jumped 3.9 per cent to $1.40, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 3.6 per cent to $0.0965, Solana (SOL) appreciated by 2.9 per cent to $85.38, Binance Coin (BNB) increased by 1.8 per cent to $625.16, Ethereum (ETH) soared 1.6 per cent to $2,356.04, Bitcoin (BTC) chalked up 1.5 per cent to sell at $75,035.47, and TRON (TRX) went up by 0.8 per cent to $0.3257, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 each.

By Dipo Olowookere

The local equity market maintained the bullish momentum on Wednesday, further appreciating by 1.69 per cent at the close of business.

The sustained appetite for stocks buoyed the growth reported by the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited yesterday, although the buying pressure was on the energy and banking sectors, which gained 4.24 per cent and 3.15 per cent, respectively.

Business Post observed that selling pressure caused the insurance index to give up 1.33 per cent, the consumer goods industry to lose 0.20 per cent, and the industrial goods counter to shrink by 0.09 per cent.

But when trading activities came to an end, the All-Share Index (ASI) soared by 3,486.03 points to 209,317.41 points from 205,831.38 points, and the market capitalisation surged by N2.281 trillion to N134.773 trillion from N132.492 trillion.

The market breadth index was negative at midweek after the bourse ended with 35 price gainers and 37 price losers, showing weak investor sentiment.

Airtel Africa topped the advancers’ log after it chalked up 10.00 per cent to trade at N2,746.70. Aradel also appreciated by 10.00 per cent to N1,406.90, Ecobank grew by 9.98 per cent to N55.65, Trans-Nationwide Express improved by 9.89 per cent to N5.00, and Fortis Global Insurance jumped 9.82 per cent to N1.23.

Conversely, Austin Laz lost 9.77 per cent to close at N3.60, John Holt depreciated by 9.72 per cent to N13.00, CWG dropped 7.22 per cent to settle at N21.20, Conoil gave up 6.80 per cent to sell for N190.50, and Omatek decreased by 5.48 per cent to N2.07.

Zenith Bank led the activity with 73.3 million shares worth N8.8 billion, Tantalizers traded 56.5 million equities valued at N220.4 million, UBA sold 49.9 million stocks for N2.3 billion, Access Holdings exchanged 38.1 million shares worth N1.0 billion, and Secure Electronic Technology transacted 32.7 million equities valued at N31.7 million.

In general, investors bought and sold 706.4 million stocks worth N41.9 billion in 46,231 deals during the session versus the 569.3 million stocks valued at N32.3 billion traded in 45,777 deals on Tuesday, indicating an improvement in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 24.08 per cent, 29.72 per cent, and 0.99 per cent, respectively.