The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission has opened a full investigation into Nigeria’s cement industry after preliminary findings suggested possible price manipulation in a market where consumers already pay more than counterparts in several African countries.

The commission’s Anticompetitive Practices Department conducted a three-month cross-border study comparing Nigeria’s cement market with Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Egypt, Morocco, Algeria and Togo. The review examined limestone availability, population, production capacity, consumption and retail prices.

Despite Nigeria’s vast limestone deposits and an installed production capacity estimated at 60 to 65 million metric tonnes annually, domestic consumption is put at only 25 to 30 million metric tonnes. Nigeria is also a net exporter of cement, yet local prices have surged.

Market data reviewed by the FCCPC showed that a 50kg bag of cement, which sold for between N9,300 and N9,700 early in the year, climbed to between N10,500 and N13,000 by mid-year, with reports of N13,000 to N15,000 in some locations.

By contrast, the commission found that consumers in several African markets pay less. In Kenya, a bag sold for about $5.40, or N7,344. In Tanzania, the price was about $4.80, or N6,528. Even in Togo, which has no limestone deposits, cement retailed at about $6.75, or N9,180 per bag.

The FCCPC said this disparity raises questions about why Nigeria’s resource endowment and excess capacity have not translated into lower prices. Industry operators have blamed energy costs, naira depreciation, imported machinery and spare parts, as well as transportation and logistics.

The commission is now testing those claims against verified data on production costs, pricing, capacity utilisation and market behaviour. It has issued formal notices and summonses to major producers, demanding records on pricing methodologies, production volumes, exports and commercial relationships.

The probe will focus on whether prevailing prices can be justified by legitimate costs or whether they reflect coordinated conduct, abuse of market power, restriction of domestic supply or anti-competitive distribution practices.

FCCPC Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Tunji Bello, said cement’s central role in housing, commercial property and public infrastructure makes the sector too important to ignore. He stressed that the commission is not seeking to fix prices or limit lawful profits, but to ensure that outcomes in the market are driven by genuine competition rather than unlawful restraints.