Lamu (Kenya) (AFP) - Africa's richest man and other officials, including the Kenyan president, participated in the groundbreaking ceremony for a new giant oil refinery worth $16 billion in Kenya on Wednesday.

Published on: 09/30/2026 - 14:56

Aliko Dangote is building the largest oil refinery in Africa in his native Nigeria. The production capacity of the new project in the port of Lamu will reach 700,000 barrels per day, which is more than the capacity of any refinery in Europe.

Dangote said, "This is an embodiment of Africans coming together to build Africa. Today we are not laying the foundation for just an oil refinery, but rather we are establishing a new chapter in Africa's industrial march."

The foundation stone laying ceremony was attended by Kenyan President William Ruto, along with regional leaders including Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni.

Dangote had considered the refinery a vital step towards reducing the continent's dependence on refined fuel imports.

He said in his speech, "For a long time, our continent has been rich in resources, but poor in the areas of value creation and value addition, as we have continued to export crude oil and import refined products."

He added, "A practice like this only leads to the export of our jobs and opportunities that should remain within the continent, and instead pushes us to import poverty into our countries."

The project, expected to be completed within 30 to 40 months, has faced a lawsuit filed by a local community over land ownership rights. A court ruling issued on Monday stated that laying the foundation stone could proceed, although the case was still being considered before the court.

Greenpeace and other environmental activists have also raised objections regarding the project's consequences, as Lamu is a prominent tourist destination famous for being home to the oldest Swahili settlement founded in the 12th century, and it is included on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

© 2026 AFP

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