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Africa’s richest man was set to break ground on a new $16-billion mega-refinery in Kenya on Wednesday, saying it marked a “new chapter in Africa’s industrial journey”.
Aliko Dangote created Africa’s biggest oil refinery in his native Nigeria, and the East African version at the port of Lamu will have a capacity of 700,000 barrels per day — larger than any in Europe.
The project, which aims for completion within 30 to 40 months, has already faced a lawsuit from a local community over land rights. A court ruling published on Monday said the ground-breaking could go ahead, but the case will continue.
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Greenpeace and other environmentalists have also raised objections over its impact. Lamu is a tourist hotspot known for the oldest Swahili settlement founded in the 12th century, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Dangote dismissed the challenges, saying: “We’re not really scared of people taking us to court. Anybody who wants to cause trouble, we are ready for his trouble and will give him a headache.”
He was joined by Kenyan President William Ruto and regional leaders, including Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, for the ceremony.
“This is Africa coming together to build Africa. Today we are not simply breaking ground for a refinery; we’re breaking ground for a new chapter in Africa’s industrial journey,” Dangote said.
Ruto said “Lamu will be the epicentre of the development of our country” and sought to reassure locals that land and environmental concerns “will be handled lawfully and fairly”.
The project is emerging amid complex regional competition, with Uganda and Tanzania announcing a rival $20-billion refinery and energy hub at the Tanzanian port of Tanga in August, although details of that venture remain sketchy.
Uganda will start producing its first oil in the coming weeks and has almost completed a pipeline to the Tanzanian coast in collaboration with French giant TotalEnergies.
As a result, most of the crude being refined at Dangote’s Kenyan refinery will have to come by ship from other regions, at least initially.
Dangote told reporters on Tuesday that it would source from the Middle East, the United States and other areas — but would be ready as countries like Kenya and Mozambique start producing more oil.
He initially considered building his refinery in Tanzania but finally chose Lamu for its deep seaport and “solid land”, he said.
It will include a 1,000-megawatt power facility, with half the production going back into the Kenyan grid.
The refinery is framed as a vital step towards Africa reducing its reliance on imports of refined fuel and foreign expertise.
“For too long, our continent has actually been rich in resources but poor in value creation and addition. We have exported crude oil and imported refined products,” Dangote said.
“Such practice only leads to us exporting our jobs and opportunities that should remain on the continent and lead us into importing poverty into our nations. Africa cannot build lasting prosperity by exporting what it has and importing what it needs,” he added.
Ruto cited figures showing that Africa produced 6.8 million barrels of crude oil per day in 2024, while consuming 4.5 million of refined petroleum products — a sign that it has high demand, but is surrendering the biggest profits to overseas refiners.
