{"id":2000111482,"date":"2026-05-10T16:05:27","date_gmt":"2026-05-10T14:05:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/?p=2000111482"},"modified":"2026-05-10T16:06:59","modified_gmt":"2026-05-10T14:06:59","slug":"dangote-eyes-kenya-for-17-billion-east-africa-oil-refinery-project","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/dangote-eyes-kenya-for-17-billion-east-africa-oil-refinery-project\/","title":{"rendered":"Dangote eyes Kenya for $17 billion East Africa oil refinery project"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

According to a report by the Financial Times, Dangote said he is leaning towards Kenya\u2019s coastal city of Mombasa for the proposed 650,000-barrel-a-day refinery, citing its strategic maritime advantages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m leaning more towards Mombasa because Mombasa has a much larger, deeper port,\u201d Dangote said in an interview cited by the publication.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Nigerian billionaire also pointed to Kenya\u2019s market size and consumption levels as key factors influencing his preference, comparing the country favourably to neighbouring Tanzania, which had also been floated as a potential host.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cKenyans consume more. It\u2019s a bigger economy,\u201d he said, adding that the final decision would depend on political backing from regional leaders. \u201cThe ball is in the hands of President Ruto. Whatever President Ruto says is what I\u2019ll do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regional race for refinery hub<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The remarks come amid growing debate in East Africa over where to establish a joint regional refinery, a project aimed at reducing reliance on imported fuel and strengthening energy security.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last month, Kenyan President William Ruto revealed that East African countries were discussing plans for a shared refinery at the Tanzanian port of Tanga, modelled on Dangote\u2019s landmark Nigerian refinery. The proposal, unveiled during the Africa We Build Summit in Nairobi, envisions processing crude oil from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, South Sudan and Uganda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ruto also outlined plans for an interconnected infrastructure system, including a pipeline linking Tanga to Mombasa and jointly owned regional energy infrastructure with Uganda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The issue briefly came back into focus during President Ruto\u2019s state visit to Dar es Salaam on May 4, 2026, when President Samia Suluhu expressed concern over the way the earlier announcement had been handled, saying she was not aware of the Tanga plans, creating a light but noticeable moment of diplomatic unease between the two East African neighbours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dangote\u2019s potential investment comes at a time when East Africa continues to rely entirely on imported refined petroleum products, primarily from the Middle East. This dependence has left the region exposed to global supply disruptions and price volatility, particularly during geopolitical tensions such as the U.S.-Israeli conflict involving Iran.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Nigerian industrialist said he is ready to replicate the scale of his Lagos-based refinery in East Africa, provided there is sufficient government support and regional coordination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At a recent infrastructure summit in Nairobi, he reiterated his willingness to invest in the region, signalling that his decision would ultimately depend on policy alignment and political commitment from host governments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If realised, the proposed refinery would mark one of the largest private energy investments in Africa and could significantly alter fuel supply dynamics across the continent\u2019s fastest-growing economic region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
The Dangote Industries refinery on the outskirts of Lagos, Nigeria, shown here in 2023, is the largest in Africa. Africa\u2019s richest man, Aliko Dangote, is considering Kenya as the preferred location for a massive oil refinery project in East Africa.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa\u2019s richest man, Aliko Dangote, is considering Kenya as the preferred location for a massive oil refinery project in East Africa, estimated to cost between $15 billion and $17 billion (approximately Rwf 25 trillion), in what could reshape the region\u2019s energy landscape.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":131,"featured_media":2000111483,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[151,69],"byline":[192],"hashtag":[],"class_list":["post-2000111482","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-editors-choice","tag-homehighlights","byline-wycliffe-nyamasege"],"bylines":[{"id":192,"name":"Wycliffe Nyamasege","slug":"wycliffe-nyamasege","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":131}],"contributors":[{"id":192,"name":"Wycliffe Nyamasege","slug":"wycliffe-nyamasege","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":131}],"featured_image":{"id":2000111483,"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/aliko-dangote-Ref.jpg","alt":"","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","width":800,"height":600,"sizes":{"thumbnail":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/aliko-dangote-Ref.jpg","width":150,"height":113},"medium":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/aliko-dangote-Ref.jpg","width":300,"height":225},"medium_large":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/aliko-dangote-Ref.jpg","width":768,"height":576},"large":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/aliko-dangote-Ref.jpg","width":800,"height":600},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/aliko-dangote-Ref.jpg","width":800,"height":600}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000111482","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/131"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2000111482"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000111482\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2000111487,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000111482\/revisions\/2000111487"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2000111483"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2000111482"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2000111482"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2000111482"},{"taxonomy":"byline","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/byline?post=2000111482"},{"taxonomy":"hashtag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hashtag?post=2000111482"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}