The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has extended its search light on cement prices in Nigeria, following preliminary investigation pointing to price manipulation in the Nigeria market.
At the disposal of the commission, is a preliminary summation of a 40-page field report collated following a three-month crossborder study by the Anticompetitive Practices Department (ACP) of the Commission.
The exercise , the commission disclosed in a statement issued yesterday by Director of Corporate Affairs Mr. Ondaje Ijagwu was undertaken in response to widespread public complaints over the high cost of cement, a common staple in the country’s construction industry.
Concerns were raised over the comparatively high retail price of cement in Nigeria compared with other markets, despite the country’s substantial limestone deposits, significant domestic production capacity and reported surplus installed capacity relative to domestic consumption.
Significantly, all the major cement manufacturers in the country cooperated with the commission by making their records available except one of them. Publicly available estimates indicate that three major undertakings account for more than 90 per cent of installed production capacity in the country.
The ACP investigations extended to markets in Sub-Saharan Africa like Kenya, Tanzania and South Africa as well as Egypt, Morocco and Algeria. Metrics adopted included the availability of limestone, the basic raw material for cement production, as well as other variables such as population, production capacity and consumption.
Nigerian business insights
In Kenya, for instance, the 58.6 million population (76 per cent lower than Nigeria’s) has domestic cement demand of approximately 9.3m MTPA (metric tonne per annum) in 2025. Retail price in Nairobi is $5.40 (N7,344). Kenya is endowed with limestone.
In Tanzania, with population of 66.3m (72 per cent lower than Nigeria’s) and the domestic cement demand is 9.3m MTPA (2025), a bag of cement sells for $4.80 (N6,528). In Togo, a bag sells for $6.75 (N9,180). Significantly, Togo does not have limestone deposit.
Comparatively, in Nigeria, market intelligence reviewed by the commission shows that the retail price of a 50kg bag of cement rose significantly during the first half of 2026. A bag reportedly selling for between N9,300 and N9,700 in January was selling for between N10,500 and N13,000 by midyear.
By July, prices of between N13,000 and N15,000 were reported in some parts of the country. The commission’s survey indicates that Nigeria has installed cement production capacity of more than 60 to 65 million metric tonnes annually, while estimated domestic consumption is approximately 25 to 30 million metric tonnes. Nigeria is also a net exporter of cement to neighbouring markets.