Kenya: Construction of Dangote's Lamu Oil Refinery to Start in October

What the report says

Capital FM, republished by AllAfrica, reports that construction of the proposed Dangote oil refinery in Lamu, Kenya, is expected to begin in October. Aliko Dangote said in an interview with the BBC that the project would move into groundbreaking then, with construction to follow. The refinery is being presented as a major energy investment for East Africa and is linked to Dangote’s broader refining expansion beyond Nigeria.

The article says the project is now estimated to cost about Sh2 trillion, lower than an earlier Sh2.2 trillion estimate. It is expected to be built with a processing capacity of 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day. If completed at that scale, it would be the largest refinery in East Africa and the second-largest in Africa, after Dangote’s refinery in Lagos.

According to the report, Dangote first outlined plans in April to extend his refining business into East Africa, with the Lamu project modeled on the Nigerian facility. The refinery is intended to supply petroleum products to Kenya and nearby markets, including Uganda, Tanzania, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In general terms, such a project could reduce reliance on imported refined fuel in the region, although the article does not provide a construction timeline beyond the October start date or additional regulatory details.