The rivalry between erstwhile friends turned enemies heated up yesterday when America’s Forbes’ magazine released its latest list of World’s richest with Femi Otedola joining Aliko Dangote who debuted last year as the only Nigerians on the billionaire club.
While Otedola makes his debut on the list as the 601 richest man in the world, Dangote is 261 a clear 340 places ahead of his rival.
According to Forbes’, Dangote net worth is $2.5billion amassed mainly through inheritance and his investments in sugar, flour and cement manufacturing. Though Dangote’s wealth has diminished by about a billion dollars since he debuted on last year with $3.3b but he moved up the list from number 334 last year to his current 261.
The magazine attributed the decline in his net worth to the global recession. His conglomerate, Dangote Group, lost about 70% of its share value as the Nigerian stock exchange took a hit as a result of the economic recession.
Dangote Group, has expanded its cement operations with new plants across Nigeria and as well as South Africa and Ethiopia.
Dangote has been feuding with Otedola over oil and gas concessions with retaliating by buying up stock in Dangote’s companies and also cross investing in the cement industry where Dangote has a monopoly.
Otedola ranked 601 on the list is not doing badly either.
After acquiring African Petroleum last year, he got himself appointed its chief executive.
According to Forbes’, he “plans to merge it with his private firm, Zenon, to create the continent’s largest oil company. Deal has stalled in the face of government concerns about a monopoly, with his assets temporarily frozen last year. Nigerian regulators lifted the ban in January.”
Otedola’s fight with Dangote intensified last month when he claimed he feared for his life and fingered Dangote as source of the threat to exterminate him.
Otedola claims Dangote broke a gentleman’s agreement when he thwarted Zenon’s bid to buy Chevron’s local subsidiary last September