The President and Chief Executive of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has broken ground on a $2.5 billion fertiliser plant in Gode, Ethiopia, in partnership with Ethiopian Investment Holdings. The project, with a planned capacity of three million metric tonnes of urea annually, is set to become one of the world’s largest fertiliser complexes.
Located in Ethiopia’s South-East, the facility will utilise natural gas from the Hilal and Calub reserves to drive agricultural productivity, boost exports, and enhance regional food security. Speaking at the ceremony, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed hailed the project as a symbol of cooperation, peace, and industrial transformation, describing it as key to “elevating Ethiopia’s presence on the global stage.”
Dangote lauded Ethiopia’s economic reforms and investment-friendly climate, noting that the plant “marks a new dawn for African industrial cooperation.” He disclosed expansion plans into ammonium nitrate, NPK, and calcium ammonium nitrate, projecting that Ethiopia could emerge as Africa’s leading agricultural nation within five years.
The project is supported by Afreximbank, AFC, and several Nigerian banks, reinforcing Dangote’s strategy of building African self-sufficiency through large-scale industrialisation.
