Flour Mills of Nigeria to Invest $1 Billion in Expansion and Restructuring Over Four Years

Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc, a Nigerian diversified agribusiness company, has announced plans to invest $1 billion over the next four years to expand its facilities and restructure the company.

Chairman John Coumantaros, in an interview on Tuesday, said the new funding is about “doubling down on investment in Nigeria.”

This investment will further support President Tinubu’s reform efforts at a time when companies like Diageo Plc and Unilever Plc are exiting or reducing their exposure to the West African nation.

Since coming to power in May 2023, President Tinubu has introduced a series of reforms from allowing the naira to free float to fuel subsidy removal to make the country more attractive to investors and steer it away from fiscal collapse.

According to Coumantaros, $500 million of the total investment will go into its sugar operations in Niger state to boost production from the current 100,000 tons to over 400,000 tons a year.

An additional $100 million will be allocated to a cassava-processing factory to end imports of starch from the tuber and expand its breakfast cereal offerings.

The 64-year-old company will also undergo reorganization following an offer from Excelsior Shipping Company Ltd. last month to buy out minority shareholders at 70 naira per share.

The company plans to restructure its more than 22 units into five individual companies, Coumantaros said.

“We want to be able to attract technical and financial partners to help us grow our sugar operations and food business. We have a lot of ambitious plans for investment and expansion.”