Aliko Dangote speaks during a meeting with Botswana President Duma Boko on Thursday, September 3 /DUMA BOKO/XNigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote has set September 30, 2026, for the groundbreaking of his planned oil refinery in Lamu, giving a firm start date to the Sh2.2 trillion project.
Dangote announced the date on Thursday while speaking to investors and analysts in Gaborone, Botswana, according to Reuters.
“We are launching it on September 30,” he said.
The proposed refinery will have a processing capacity of 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day, making it the largest refinery in East Africa once completed.
The project is expected to take up to three years to complete and will supply refined petroleum products to Kenya and neighbouring countries, helping reduce the region’s dependence on imported fuel.
Lamu was selected as the site after Dangote Industries considered other locations in East Africa, including Tanzania.
Preliminary work, including site selection, soil testing and engineering and design, had already begun by July.
The refinery is expected to form part of a wider industrial development in Lamu, with plans for supporting energy, manufacturing, storage and logistics facilities.
President William Ruto’s administration has backed the project as a major investment in Kenya’s energy and industrial sectors.
The wider development is expected to create about 60,000 jobs, according to government projections.
Dangote has offered East African countries a combined 30 per cent stake in the refinery and associated project.
Kenya has been offered a 10 per cent stake valued at about Sh64.74 billion, equivalent to $500 million.
Rwanda and Ethiopia have also expressed interest in participating in the regional shareholding.
The government is also planning supporting infrastructure around the refinery, including a 1,000-megawatt power plant and a special economic zone intended to support manufacturing and other industries.
The refinery would be Dangote’s biggest refining investment outside Nigeria and follows the establishment of his 650,000-barrel-per-day refinery in Lagos.
The Lamu project is intended to replicate the scale of Dangote’s Nigerian downstream investment while positioning Kenya as a regional hub for petroleum processing and fuel supply.
