Dangote warns of global oil shocks

He said: “It means quite a lot. We don’t have much to do with it, but the world is a global village, and it definitely will affect us, unfortunately. But we pray this situation will be sorted out; it’s not going to escalate. If it doesn’t de-escalate, we’ll end up paying high prices.

“If you look at it today, Africa is very busy paying debts and putting this again on top of us is going to add a lot of hardship on the government, on the people, on everybody, for something that we have no, really, any involvement in.

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“When you talk about energy, energy affects almost everything, and it’s not only energy. Some people will try to take a chance and say this is an opportunity, so let me make money. So if this thing doesn’t de-escalate, it is going to keep going up and up and up, and governments cannot really now go and add salaries. So people will really feel the heat.” 

Dangote cited the potential impact of rising oil costs on artisans and small-scale operators who depend on fuel-powered generators for their livelihoods.

“People like barbers, people who are making bread, people who have industries, who have to fire their own generators… people will feel it,” he said.

The business mogul also pointed to emerging global responses to energy pressures, including reduced work schedules in some countries, drawing parallels with the COVID-19 era.

“You can see, in some countries today, what they’ve done is ask everybody to work from home because they cannot cope. I think in Indonesia, or so they said, people only go to work four days a week, and they will look at the situation. If it doesn’t improve, they will ask everybody not to go to work anymore. We did that in the time of COVID-19,” he noted.

Dangote, however, expressed hope that the Middle East tension would ease. He called for collective prayers and global efforts to prevent further escalation.

“We all need to pray that this thing de-escalates. If it doesn’t, normally, we in Africa, we don’t have any reserves… people normally go out and look for money for the next day or even for the same day. If they don’t work that day, they won’t eat. So I think really, we just need all hands on deck to pray that this thing comes to an end,”  he said.

He also explained to reporters that his visit to   Tinubu was primarily to extend Eid greetings, check on the President’s health and pay his respects.

“I just came to see His Excellency, Mr President, just wish him Eid Mubarak and also ask after his health. I haven’t seen him for a while, and wish him all the very best and pay my respect. That’s what the visit is all about,” he said.

On the economic significance of Tinubu’s U.K outing, Dangote described it as a major diplomatic and investment breakthrough, noting that modern diplomacy must be driven by economic interests.

“I think it has opened ways. Today, diplomacy without the economic part of it is not complete. So I believe his visit will open quite a lot of doors,” he said.

The business mogul pointed specifically to the £746 million agreement aimed at improving Nigeria’s infrastructure, especially in the ports sector, describing it as a strong signal of international confidence in the country.

“You can see the agreement that was signed for actually improving our infrastructure, especially in the ports and other areas, which is almost £746 million, that’s quite a lot. It’s not that easy dealing with the British, getting this kind of money out of them. They, too, are struggling on their own. But I think this is to show confidence. It’s not about the money, it’s about the confidence in Nigeria,” Dangote stated.

He added that the deal would likely trigger further investments from other countries, positioning Nigeria as an attractive destination for global capital.

“The moment they do that, there will be other countries that will follow suit. It’s not the £746 million. We too can do that to any other country and invest. But I think it is something to show an appreciation of Mr President’s good work, the infrastructure he has been building. This will help and complement, but there will be other countries that will come. Germany will come, others… they will line up and start coming now. This is supposed to be a win-win situation,” he said.

Dangote also urged Nigerian investors to leverage the momentum created by the U.K engagement, particularly by accessing international credit facilities that have remained largely untapped.

He added: “For Nigerian investors, it has shown that we can also go to the same agency and tap the resources. It means that the agency is now open for business for Nigerians, and we will go as private people to look for them to give us support. It’s a credit agency which we haven’t really tapped for a very long time.  

‘’I think with what has happened now, it shows that there is capacity for them to fund some of our projects.”