Dangote Group is set to partner with Kenya and other East African interests on a proposed $17bn refinery and petrochemical complex in Lamu, as the conglomerate expands its industrial investments across Africa.
Kenyan President William Ruto reaffirmed his government’s support for the project after touring the Dangote Petroleum Refinery in Lagos. He described the 700,000-barrels-per-day facility as a major engineering achievement and said the visit strengthened his confidence in the proposed East African project.
Ruto said preparations for the Lamu project’s groundbreaking had been completed, describing the facility as a regional rather than exclusively Kenyan investment. He said it was expected to support industrialisation, create jobs, strengthen technical capacity and improve energy security across East Africa.
The Kenyan president also pledged to remove administrative obstacles that could delay construction. He said the government had secured the required land and would work with Dangote Group to ensure the project progressed without unnecessary bureaucratic delays.
Dangote Group Chief Strategy Officer, Aliyu Suleiman, said the conglomerate generated about $17bn in revenue during the first half of 2026 and was targeting $36bn for the full year. He attributed the growth to investments in cement, sugar, fertiliser, refining, upstream oil and gas and other strategic businesses.
Suleiman said the group invested about $50bn in capital expenditure between 2020 and 2025 and planned to invest twice that amount over the next five years. He said the Lamu refinery and petrochemical complex would be central to the company’s plan to build a $100bn African industrial enterprise, alongside investments in ports, gas, LNG, power and mining.
As part of preparations, Dangote Group has signed a contract worth more than $450m with Engineers India Limited for project management consultancy and engineering, procurement and construction management services. The proposed Lamu facility is expected to have a processing capacity of 700,000 barrels per day.
