Our objective is to create the region distinct,” the businessman said during the time that speaking at the ceremony.
Dangote said the refinery would construct on the be aware of of his 700,000-barrel-per-day Dangote Refinery in Lagos, Nigeria, whereas serving the wider East African market.
He disclosed that his business had offered territorial governments a united 30 per cent equity stake in the project, in a shift aimed at giving participating countries a manage involve in the refinery.
He furthermore said a $450 million engineering contract for the project had been awarded to Engineers India Unchanging.
The groundbreaking ceremony attracted district and continental leaders, using Ruto joined by Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and Togolese President Jean-Lucien Savi de Tové.
The presence of the leaders underscored the territorial importance of the project and its promising consequence on energy provide, commerce and industrial development across East Africa.
The refinery is to be located at Lamu Port, a large infrastructure project on Kenya’s northern coast that forms section of the country’s broader transport and exchange corridor.
The Lamu Port is designed to associate Kenya’s northern region and neighbouring landlocked countries to international maritime exchange routes.
Together with the refinery expected to be incorporated into the area’s wider infrastructure network, the project could continued strengthen the corridor and guide the movement of petroleum products and other industrial goods across the region.
Kenyan officials approximate that East Africa’s annual require for petroleum products is amid 20 million and 30 million statistic tonnes.
Field experts have moreover estimated that the region would name for refining capacity of additional than one million barrels per day to encounter its growing contact for for petroleum products.
Beyond refining fuel, the project is expected to support the development of relevant industries, including petrochemicals and bitumen production.
It is additionally projected to generate further than 50,000 jobs and generate wider economic opportunities by manner of increased industrial job, regional deliver chains and associated infrastructure development.
The project comes amid concerns over high fuel prices and East Africa’s continued dependence on imported elegant petroleum products.
Africa’s richest businessman, Aliko Dangote, on Wednesday commenced the construction of a $16 billion oil refinery in Kenya.
Dangote, alongside Kenyan President William Ruto, former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo and other African leaders, performed the groundbreaking ceremony for the refinery at Lamu Port in northern Kenya.
The project is expected to become one of the largest investments in the region’s energy sector and is scheduled for completion in 2030.
The proposed refinery is expected to increase the provide of polished petroleum products before the conclude of East Africa and decrease the region’s reliance on imports, whereas helping countries conserve foreign manage spent on importing fuel.
Dangote said the project was conceived to assist the region attain increased self-sufficiency in improved petroleum products.
“When you look at East Africa, and indeed most of Africa’s 54 countries, they import petroleum products.
Source: Obasanjo, Ruto, others present as Dangote flags off $16bn refinery in Kenya
