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Reasons we cannot sell cement below N7,000, by Dangote, Bua, Lafarge

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Nigerian Cement manufacturers have said a surge in their operating costs was responsible for the sudden increase in the prices of the commodity around the country.

They have however agreed to bring down the price of the product from between N9,000 to N15,000 to between N7,000 and N8,000 per 50kg depending on the location nationwide.

This development emerged after a meeting by the Minister of Works, David Umahiattended by his Industry, Trade and Investment counterpart, Doris Uzoka-Anite on Monday in Abuja with representatives of Dangote Cement Plc, BUA Cement Plc and Lafarge Africa Plc.

 

After almost three hours of discussion, the Works Minister read the communique of the meeting where the cement manufacturers explained the reasons why the price could not be lower than N7,000 for the time being and why it went up astronomically in the first place.

The manufacturers noted that the challenges of the high cost of gas, import duties, bad road network and the prevailing high rate of foreign exchange against the naira are militating against an instant drop in the price of the commodity.

 

Kabir Rabiu, the Executive Director of BUA said the meeting was extensive but the manufacturers would abide by the agreement.

According to him, the manufacturers were helpless over the issue of the surging prices.

 

He said: “First our cost component of energy went from 39 percent to 60 percent because of gas

“The price of gas last year was 415, then to N715, today we are paying more than N1,500. All these issues were discussed and we gave our commitment.

 

“When our 6 million tonnes of cement is supplied to the market in the few weeks, definitely we will see a sharp drop in prices when that volume hits the market”.

He said the big disparity between demand and supply also played a major role in the price surge considering the season too.

 

According to him, some manufacturing plants have issues and cannot produce probably by choice or accident, which leads to a reduction in production.

“And being the highest period of cement demand in the country, the tendency that demand will outstrip supply will push the price up,” he added.

He also noted that smuggling across the border contributes to the scarcity of the commodity which added to the surge in price.

He said the commodity is much costlier in Cameroon, for instance, which makes Nigerian cement a target for cross-border smuggling to Cameroon and other neighbouring countries.

The representative of Dangote Cement Plc, the Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer,  Arvind Pathak, said notwithstanding that the core materials of the commodity are locally sourced, he said spare parts, among several other variables are subject to the mechanism of Import Duties and foreign exchange which makes it difficult for the manufacturers to disregard the prevailing economic indices.

 

Parts of the communique read by Umahi read:  “The government and the manufacturers noted that depending on the location, ideally, the price should not be more than N7,000 and N8,000 to get to the consumer per 50 kg bag of cement.

“The manufacturers, BUA Cement Plc, Dangote Cement Plc and Lafarge Africa Plc have agreed to have their cement price nationwide to between N7,000 and N8,000 per 50kg depending on the location.

“Between the Federal government and cement manufacturers to set up a price monitoring mechanism to ensure compliance for the price we have set today and manufacturers have accepted to sanction, on their own, any of their distributors or retailers found wanting.

 

“Government expects the agreed price to drop after securing government’s interventions on the challenges of the manufacturers on gas, import duty, smuggling, and better road network.

“It was also agreed that the government will encourage the emergence of at least six cement manufacturers to augment the three existing companies.

 

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Fuel price cut: Dangote Refinery petrol distribution will reduce Nigeria’s inflation – Rewane

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The Chief Executive Officer of Financial Derivatives Company, Bismarck Rewane, said that Dangote Refinery’s petrol distribution initiative, billed to kick off on August 15, 2025, would help in curbing Nigeria’s headline inflation, which stood at 22.97 percent as of May.

Rewane made this known in a statement on Monday, citing an FDC report published in the Lagos Business School (LBS) Executive Breakfast Presentation for July 2025.

According to Rewane, Dangote Refinery’s plan to spend over N1.7 trillion annually on logistics costs to distribute fuel is a game changer in the country’s oil and gas downstream sector.

He noted that Dangote Refinery’s move to use compressed natural gas trucks to distribute fuel and automotive gas oil nationwide to the doorsteps of end-users will lower prices and curb inflation.

“The initiative is set to revolutionise Nigeria’s oil downstream business by cutting logistics costs and by spending over N1.7 trillion annually,” it stated, emphasising that Dangote Refinery’s fuel distribution strategy, which involves deploying 4,000 compressed natural gas (CNG) trucks nationwide, will lower pump prices, curb inflation, and support over 42 million MSMEs (micro, small, and medium enterprises).

“With 4,000 CNG-powered trucks delivering refined products directly to the doorsteps of end-users, the move will lower pump prices, curb inflation, and support over 42 million MSMEs.”

Ekwutosblog reports that Dangote Refinery announced a plan to commence direct petrol and diesel distribution to end-users.

However, petroleum products marketers and retailers have kicked against the move, noting it would lead to massive job losses.

Ekwutosblog reports that fuel prices dropped in the last six days following the drop in global crude oil prices and the ex-depot price slash to N840 per litre from N880 by Dangote Refinery.

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Nigerian govt agencies to unlock $25bn revenue through electricity, digital development

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Two Nigerian government agencies, the Galaxy Backbone and the Rural Electrification Agency, have signed a partnership to provide electricity and digital connectivity to schools, hospitals, and other public institutions across the country.

This comes as the federal government agencies said the initiative is expected to help unlock $25 billion in revenue annually associated with the lack of electricity and other infrastructural development in Nigeria.

This was made known during a Memorandum of Understanding signing event in Abuja on Friday.

Speaking on the partnership, the Managing Director of GBB, Prof. Ibrahim Adeyanyu, said it would ensure effectiveness in government services to Nigerians.

He explained that the collaboration will ensure that hospitals, universities, security outfits, and government institutions have access to electricity and digital connectivity.

“We are going to target public institutions to make them more efficient and reduce the cost of governance.

“Already, we are looking at starting with a number of federal institutions within Abuja, including the National Hospital and some security outfit institutions within Abuja, and we would like to work this infrastructure deployment to get out of Galaxy Backbone, Abuja.

“Imagine providing access to the internet and electricity to the lowest micro-level of the sub-national, the local government level. Imagine how we would transform local government administration. And this is very much also in line with Mr. President, where the roles and responsibilities of local government have been brought back to make them more effective and to make sure that governance has gone down to the community level,” he stated.

On his part, the Managing Director of REA, Abba Abubakar Aliyu, said the MoU is an effort by President Bola Ahmed to drive inclusive development in Nigeria.

He emphasised that the initiative would unlock $25 billion annually associated with lack of electricity and infrastructural development in the country.

According to him, the partnership will ensure that no community is left behind in Tinubu’s government’s renewed hope agenda and the realisation of its $1 trillion economy target.

“For us, today (Friday), we are showing and demonstrating how two different government agencies can collaborate towards the development of this country. Today, we are showing we are planting the seed to unlock a $25 billion economy. The cost of lack of electricity and associated development initiatives within the country is costing the country $25 billion annually.

“Today, we are looking at contributing to the objective of Mr. President towards the realisation of the $1 trillion economy. Today, we are planting the seed for the development of small, medium, and micro enterprises across the country. Today, we are enhancing the governance of this country by making public institutions more efficient, operating with less cost, and also having all the necessary digital requirements for them to carry out their own functions.

“The nexus between electricity, financial inclusion, and the digital economy cannot be overemphasised. We have seen it over and over in the study that wherever there is no electricity, there is no financial inclusion, and there is no digital value that has been created within those communities. Nigeria has the highest number of people without electricity, which by extension means that the country has the highest number of people that are financially excluded, and they are not reaping the benefit of the digital economy,” he stated.

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TCN counters AEDC, denies responsibility for Abuja power outage

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The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has denied responsibility for the power outage in several parts of Abuja.

Its denial counters claims by the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC), that blamed the outage in areas such as Dilic Hotel, Prime Plaza, Exclusive Stores, Gilmore, Takwa Crescent, and Former Zartech in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) on a “technical fault” from the Transmission Company of Nigeria.

This is contained in a statement on Thursday by Ndidi Mbah, spokesperson for TCN.

The statement reads; “The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) informs the public that the power outage affecting Dilic Hotel, Prime Plaza, Exclusive Stores, PENCOM, AMCON, Gilmore, Takwa Crescent, Former Zartech, and its environ is not due to at technical fault from TCN, contrary to Abuja Distribution Company (AEDC)’s claim,” Mbah said.

“TCN’s feeders serving these areas are not in any way experiencing outages. For emphasis, TCN’s feeders serving these areas are functioning normally, contrary to AEDC’s claim.”

The claims and counter claims now put residents in confusion as to the cause of the power outage.

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