Dangote Chooses Kenya for 700,000-bpd East Africa Mega Refinery

Africa's richest man, Aliko Dangote, has selected Kenya as the location for his proposed 700,000 barrels-per-day (bpd) refinery, ending months of speculation over where the landmark East African energy project would be sited.

A senior official of Dangote Industries Limited confirmed on Tuesday that the refinery will be built in Lamu, a coastal island in Kenya, with construction expected to take approximately 30 months.

The announcement was made by Edwin Devakumar, Vice President in charge of Oil and Gas at Dangote Industries Limited, who disclosed the decision in an interview with AFP.

The proposed refinery, comparable in scale to the company's flagship facility in Nigeria, is expected to significantly boost fuel production capacity in East Africa and strengthen regional energy security.

Kenya's emergence as the preferred destination follows months of evaluation, during which Tanzania was also considered a strong contender for the investment.

Last month, Dangote visited Tanzania, where he held discussions with President Samia Suluhu Hassan on the proposed project.

According to a statement issued after the meeting, Dangote explained the commercial and technical reasons behind the company's decision to locate the refinery in Lamu while inviting Tanzania to participate in the investment.

Before the final decision, the Nigerian billionaire had also indicated that Mombasa was being considered as a possible location before settling on Lamu.

The new refinery forms part of Dangote's broader strategy to expand its refining footprint across Africa.

The company's flagship Dangote Petroleum Refinery, with a processing capacity of 650,000 barrels per day, commenced operations in 2024 and remains Africa's largest refinery.

Dangote has also announced plans to increase the Nigerian refinery's capacity to 1.4 million barrels per day by 2028, a move that could make it the largest refinery in the world.

The refinery has transformed Nigeria's downstream petroleum sector by reducing dependence on imported refined petroleum products after decades of underperforming state-owned refineries.

Beyond meeting domestic fuel demand, the Dangote refinery has expanded its international market presence by exporting aviation fuel to destinations including the United States, Europe, and Brazil.

Earlier this year, the company disclosed that it had exported 12 cargoes totalling 456,000 tonnes of petroleum products to several African countries, including Côte d'Ivoire, Cameroon, Tanzania, Ghana and Togo.

The company has also announced plans to list the Dangote Refinery on the Nigerian Exchange Group next year as it continues to expand its operations and attract new investors.

The planned Kenya refinery is expected to deepen Dangote Industries' presence in Africa's energy sector while supporting regional efforts to improve fuel availability and reduce dependence on imported refined petroleum products.

AFP