NAIROBI/ABUJA: Nigeria's Dangote oil refinery is preparing what could become Africa's biggest stock market listing, aiming to raise about US$5 billion through an initial public offering expected to conclude in October, a source familiar with the plan told Reuters.

Majority-owned by Africa's richest man, Aliko Dangote, the refinery benefited from the war in Iran by selling jet fuel across Africa and to Western Europe as countries grappled with fuel shortages.

Dangote plans to use the proceeds to expand the capacity of the 650,000-barrel-per-day refinery in Lagos and replicate its model with a similar facility in Kenya. His broader goal is to reduce Africa's reliance on imported fuels and eventually turn the continent into a fuel exporter.

The planned IPO has already attracted interest from across Africa. Stock exchanges in South Africa, Kenya, Egypt, Ghana and Rwanda have held meetings with the refinery's advisers in recent months about participating in the offering.

Kenya's capital markets alone could account for as much as $500 million of the fundraising target, the source said, adding there was "tremendous" demand among local investors, including pension funds.

A second source with direct knowledge of the transaction said Dangote Petroleum Refinery & Petrochemicals FZE has submitted its IPO application to Nigeria's Securities and Exchange Commission and is expected to receive approval in the coming weeks. A prospectus could be published in September.

The first source said the $5 billion fundraising target will ultimately depend on regulatory approval because the primary listing will take place on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the plans are confidential, said details such as the size of the stake to be offered and the final valuation have yet to be determined. A private placement completed last month valued the refinery at about $40 billion, according to the second source.

Dangote did not respond to a request for comment.

The first source said other African markets interested in participating would likely need "structured solutions," such as global depositary receipts or exchange-traded instruments linked to the Nigerian-listed shares. A cross-listing on other African exchanges is not planned at this stage.

The refinery, which cost about $20 billion to build, began operations in 2024 and reached full capacity earlier this year. Nigeria's state oil company NNPC owns just over seven percent of the project.

Dangote, 69, is seeking to make the offering a pan-African investment opportunity, with the source describing the aim as enabling capital markets across the continent to participate in "an African champion."