Watchdog Probes Cement Giants as Price Soars to N15,000 Despite Local Production Surplus

Federal consumer protection authorities have summoned Nigeria’s major cement producers as part of a sweeping investigation into suspected price manipulation, following a sharp rise in building material costs across the country.

The probe follows a three-month cross-border study conducted by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), which tracked domestic price movements alongside regional African markets. Investigations revealed that a 50-kilogram bag of cement, which sold for between N9,300 and N9,700 in January, spiked to between N10,500 and N13,000 by mid-year before hitting N15,000 in several parts of the country by July.

Regulators highlighted a severe market paradox: Nigeria boasts massive limestone deposits and an annual production capacity of up to 65 million metric tonnes—more than double the nation’s domestic demand of roughly 30 million tonnes. Despite this surplus, Nigerian builders pay significantly more for cement than buyers in other African nations. Comparative findings showed cement retailing at the equivalent of N7,344 in Kenya, N6,528 in Tanzania, and N9,180 in Togo, a country with no local limestone reserves.

While cement manufacturers attribute the steep price hikes to rising energy expenses, currency devaluation affecting imported machine parts, and heavy freight logistics, regulatory investigators are auditing these justifications against corporate balance sheets. With three major producers controlling over 90 percent of Nigeria’s installed production capacity, the commission is testing whether current prices reflect genuine operational costs or result from coordinated price-fixing, supply restriction, and market power abuse.