Nigeria’s Dangote mega-refinery has secured $2.5 billion in private equity investment to fund its expansion plans, according to a statement from the company on Thursday. The investment marks a major step in widening its refining business to east Africa.

The private placement gives investors a stake in the 650,000 barrels-per-day (bpd) refinery, which was launched two years ago and is currently the largest on the continent. Until this round, only the Nigerian government-controlled oil corporation NNPCL held a piece of the company, owning about 7.2 percent.

Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals described the investment as ‘believed to be the largest publicly disclosed private investment in Africa.’ Analysts said the private placement is a precursor to an initial public offer, which would open investment in the refinery to the public later this year.

Company founder and Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, said the funds will help raise ‘capital to complement … internal cash flows and external funding’ as the company ‘advances its expansion agenda.’

Dangote plans to more than double the refining capacity of its Nigerian operations from 650,000 bpd to 1.4 million bpd, which would make it the largest refinery globally, surpassing India’s Jamnagar Refinery. Additionally, Dangote is planning to build a 700,000-bpd East African oil refinery in Lamu on the Kenya coast.

Africa currently imports more than 70 percent of its refined fuel and some $230 billion worth of essential goods, including food, plastics, steel, and fertiliser each year, according to a report by the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) in April. With the additional funds, Dangote said the company aims to reduce ‘Africa’s reliance on imported refined products’ and strengthen the ‘continent’s energy security.’