Dangote Cement acquires 20,000 vehicles for $150m to boost operations by Haleem Olatunji

Dangote Cement Plc has acquired 20,000 additional vehicles to boost the distribution of products across the country. Tony Chiejine, the company’s spokesman, made this known in a statement on Monday. He said the new vehicles, made up of trucks, trailers and tippers, were acquired at the cost of $150 million. Chiejine said the company had recently taken delivery of another set of trucks, trailers, bulk tankers, tippers, cargo trucks and bulk cement tankers. “These assets would meet the expected increase in demand for transportation of cement to every part of the country and create employment for over 4,000 people in Nigeria,” he said. “We have acquired the new trucks in line with our new expansion capacity in Obajana, Ibese, Gboko and the new cement plant coming up on stream at Okpella, Edo state in few weeks.” Chiejine said Dangote Fertiliser Company recently took delivery of 500 trucks from Dangote Sinotruk West Africa Ltd. to distribute the Urea brand of fertiliser to different parts of the country. He said Dangote Sinotruck West Africa Ltd is a joint venture between Dangote Industries Ltd and Sinotruk China. The spokesman quoted Abdu Dantata, group executive director, logistics and distribution, that the acquisition was due to the growing needs of the business. “This is especially as regards the increased trucking demands encountered lately, due to the surge in the demands for cement,” Dantata said. “The establishment of our clinker export terminals at Apapa and Onne Port led to the purchase of heavy-duty tippers for haulage of clinker from the plants to the terminals. “The introduction of these trucks would improve customers’ demand, improve on job creation in the country, as well as promote the economic development of Nigeria.”