Nigeria sugar industry investment
CBMI signs deal with BUA Group to build key infrastructure for the $300 million LASUCO sugar complex in Kwara State, marking its first foray into the Nigerian food industry.
China National Building Material International Engineering Co., Ltd. (CBMI) has signed a contract with Nigeria’s BUA Group to deliver critical infrastructure for a major sugar production facility in Kwara State. The agreement, sealed during a high-level video conference between CBMI’s General Manager and BUA Group Chairman Abdul Samad Rabiu, covers the construction of a water-retaining dam, canals, GRP water conveyance pipelines, and associated civil works for a 220,000-tonne-per-year sugar project.
The deal represents a strategic milestone for CBMI, which has long partnered with BUA Group in the cement sector. By entering BUA’s food and agro-industrial portfolio, CBMI is diversifying beyond its traditional business lines and deepening its footprint across Africa’s industrial landscape.
A Flagship Project for Nigerian Sugar Self-Sufficiency
The contract is part of a much larger undertaking by BUA Group subsidiary Lafiagi Sugar Company Limited (LASUCO), which is developing what is set to become Nigeria’s largest integrated sugar production complex. Located in Lafiagi, Kwara State, the approximately $300 million facility is designed to crush up to 10,000 tonnes of sugarcane per day and produce around 220,000 metric tonnes of refined sugar annually.
Beyond sugar milling and refining, the complex includes a biomass power station capable of generating roughly 35 megawatts of electricity from bagasse, as well as an ethanol plant expected to produce about 20 million litres of industrial ethanol per year. The project spans approximately 20,000 hectares and features extensive supporting infrastructure, including irrigation systems, roads, an airstrip, residential housing, healthcare centres, and schools for workers and surrounding communities.
As of late 2025, the project was reported to be approximately 80 per cent complete, with construction accelerating across both the plantation and industrial units.
Addressing a National Priority
Nigeria is one of Africa’s largest sugar consumers, yet the country remains heavily dependent on imports, with domestic production meeting only a fraction of demand. The federal government has identified sugar industry localisation as a national strategic priority through its National Sugar Master Plan, aiming to attract both domestic and foreign investment into large-scale sugarcane cultivation and processing.
Senior Nigerian government officials have praised the LASUCO project as the single largest new private-sector investment in the country’s sugar industry. Nigeria’s Minister of State for Industry, John Owan Enoh, has noted that the scale of infrastructure already in place signals the project’s readiness for full operations and underscored its importance for the country’s broader industrialisation and agricultural modernisation goals. Once fully operational, the plant is expected to significantly reduce Nigeria’s foreign exchange outflows on sugar imports while creating substantial employment across farming and manufacturing.
A Forward-Looking Partnership
During the signing ceremony, Chairman Rabiu expressed appreciation for CBMI’s long-standing support and voiced confidence in expanding the partnership into the food sector. CBMI’s General Manager, in turn, reaffirmed the company’s commitment to leveraging its engineering expertise to support BUA Group’s growth across new industries.
For CBMI, the contract is more than a single project win — it is a signal of the company’s broader strategy to diversify across Africa’s rapidly evolving industrial sectors. For BUA Group and Nigeria alike, it brings one of Africa’s most ambitious sugar projects a step closer to completion.
