Kenya fast-tracks approvals for Dangote’s proposed Lamu refinery
Kenyan President William Ruto says his government is clearing administrative requirements for a proposed 700,000-barrel-per-day Dangote refinery in Lamu. Aliko Dangote said the complex would be slightly larger than the Nigerian facility and include a 1,000-megawatt power plant, polypropylene production and additional processing units.
Kenyan President William Ruto says his government is accelerating administrative processes for a proposed Dangote refinery in Lamu, ahead of a planned groundbreaking ceremony on September 30. Ruto made the announcement on Friday during a visit to Dangote’s refinery in Lekki, Lagos. He said Kenya had secured land for the project and was addressing other requirements to prevent bureaucratic delays during construction and subsequent operations.
The proposed facility is expected to process 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day, compared with the Lagos refinery’s design capacity of 650,000 barrels per day. Ruto described the Kenyan project as a regional investment that would expand industrial activity, create jobs and improve technical skills in East Africa. Dangote said the Lamu complex would include a power plant with 1,000 megawatts of generation capacity, twice the capacity of the power plant at the Lagos refinery.
He also announced plans for a one-million-tonne polypropylene plant, which would support industries producing items such as plastic pipes, cable coverings and furniture. The businessman said the Kenyan project would include processing equipment not found at the Lagos facility because of differences in crude and product requirements. He mentioned heavier versions of certain units, as well as a coker and a vacuum distillation unit.
He said experience from building and operating the Nigerian refinery would inform the Lamu development. Dangote described the planned refinery as a catalyst for wider investment, with businesses potentially taking advantage of its infrastructure and petroleum products. Ruto said viewing the Lagos facility had given him a clearer understanding of the scale of the Kenyan proposal.
The Kenyan president said discussions with Dangote had initially focused on buying fertiliser, but later shifted towards a refinery for the region. He described the Nigerian refinery as an extraordinary industrial achievement and expressed confidence in the proposed Lamu investment.
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