DICON D7G plans to establish military hardware maintenance hubs across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones as it expands local defence manufacturing and seeks to strengthen military equipment support across the country.

The company also plans to begin manufacturing and assembling tanks, armoured personnel carriers (APCs), boats, Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles and drones at its Lagos facility, alongside the planned launch of a military jetty in Ojo, Lagos State, in November 2026.
Chief Executive Officer of DICON D7G, Osman Chennar, disclosed the plans at the ongoing Africa International Defence Exhibition (AFRIDEX) in Eko Atlantic, Victoria Island, Lagos.
Organised by dmg events in partnership with the Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria (DICON), with support from the Federal Government and the Ministry of Defence, the exhibition runs until October 29, 2026.

AFRIDEX brings together African governments, armed forces, defence manufacturers and technology providers to explore military capabilities, procurement, operational readiness and the development of indigenous defence industries across land, maritime, air, space and cyber domains.
Chennar said the company was expanding beyond arms and ammunition production to manufacture a wider range of military equipment locally.

“We are moving beyond the production of arms and ammunition alone; we are starting the production of tanks, Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs), boats, Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles (MRAPs), drones, armoured tanks, and others in our Lagos jetty, which will be launched in November 2026,” he said.
He added that the initiative aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s security agenda.
“We have keyed into the agenda of President Bola Tinubu to secure the nation,” Chennar said.
On military support for the initiative, the chief executive said the armed forces had backed the company’s efforts, expressing appreciation to the Minister of Defence and the service chiefs.
He also disclosed that DICON D7G signed agreements with unnamed countries on October 28, 2026, for the delivery of 2,000 armoured vehicles, including tanks, APCs and Buffalo vehicles, for export to other African countries.

According to him, the agreements would strengthen Nigeria’s position as a supplier of defence equipment to other countries on the continent.
Chennar said the company was already exporting military equipment and ammunition to Ghana, Gabon and Côte d’Ivoire.
He put the starting prices of its products at $290,000 to $340,000 for APCs, $420,000 to $570,000 for MRAP vehicles, and $1.4 million to $1.9 million for tanks.
“Our prices are the lowest in the market because our aim is technology transfer in Nigeria,” he said.
The planned maintenance hubs, he added, would help support military hardware across the country, while partnerships with other African companies would expand production capacity and promote regional cooperation.

“We have the capacity to produce the military hardware needed in Nigeria, and we are partnering with other firms in Africa on production. We want to support Nigerian products and help others to grow,” Chennar said.
The proposed hubs are expected to support the company’s wider drive to expand domestic defence manufacturing and equipment servicing. Their establishment would also align with efforts to strengthen local technical capacity and reduce reliance on overseas support for military hardware.