Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest person, said he plans to diversify his group’s investments in Cameroon, starting with energy.
“We have plans to expand our investment to other sectors beginning with oil and gas,” Dangote told reporters Wednesday after meeting Cameroonian President Paul Biya in the capital, Yaounde. He didn’t provide further details.
The Nigerian billionaire, founder of the multinational industrial conglomerate Dangote Group, also announced his company will double cement production in Cameroon.
Dangote opened a 1.5 million-ton cement grinding facility in the central African nation in March 2015 that ended a 40-year French monopoly in the industry.
Dangote isn’t the only entity eyeing Cameroon’s oil sector.
Africa-focused Savannah Energy and Exxon Mobil Corp are in exclusive talks over the sale of Exxon’s interest in energy assets in Cameroon and Chad.
The British oil and gas producer is proposing to buy a 40% operated interest in the Doba oil project in Chad, and a 40% interest in the Chad-Cameroon oil transportation pipeline.
Story compiled with assistance from wire reports