“Kenya was the choice from the beginning,” Devakumar said while confirming that the refinery would be built in Lamu.
The project is expected to cost Ksh2.59 trillion (USD20 billion), making it one of the largest private investments ever proposed in Kenya.
According to the company, construction is expected to take between 30 months and three years before the refinery begins processing crude oil for the Kenyan market and neighbouring countries.
Dangote Industries also revealed that the project will be financed through a combination of internally generated cash, bond issuances and proceeds from a planned initial public offering (IPO), reducing reliance on external borrowing.
The confirmation comes weeks after Dangote met Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan, where he explained why the company had opted against locating the refinery in Tanzania despite initially considering the country’s port city of Tanga.
During the discussions, Dangote invited Tanzania to participate in the Lamu project, signalling that while Kenya will host the refinery, the investment is intended to serve the wider East African market.
The planned refinery will replicate Dangote’s flagship facility outside Lagos, Nigeria, which currently processes 650,000 barrels of crude oil per day and is already undergoing expansion to reach 1.4 million barrels daily by 2028.
President William Ruto had earlier announced that Dangote was expected to begin construction of the Kenyan refinery this year, with the investment poised to strengthen Kenya’s position as a regional energy and petroleum hub.
