Ruto Tours Dangote Refinery, Says Kenya’s Lamu Project Will Be Bigger

Kenyan President William Ruto has described Nigeria’s Dangote Petroleum Refinery as an example of what African governments, investors and financial institutions can achieve through collaboration, following his tour of the facility in Lagos.

Ruto visited the refinery in the Lekki area of Lagos on Friday, September 25, 2026, at the invitation of Dangote Group President and Chief Executive Officer Aliko Dangote. His visit came days before the planned groundbreaking of Kenya’s East Africa Refinery in Lamu, scheduled for September 30.

In a post on his official X account, Ruto highlighted the scale of the Nigerian facility, describing it as a major investment with a stated refining capacity of 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day. He also pointed to infrastructure built to support the movement of crude to the refinery, including 120 kilometres of subsea pipelines.

Ruto said the experience from Nigeria demonstrated the potential of large-scale industrial projects when governments, private investors and financial institutions work together.

The Kenyan president also said the refinery planned for Lamu would be bigger and would play a significant role in Kenya’s petroleum sector and the wider East African economy. According to Ruto, the project is expected to strengthen fuel security, support industrialisation and create about 60,000 jobs.

He further said the completion of the Kenyan refinery could generate additional industries, including businesses involved in fertiliser, chemicals and packaging production.

The proposed East Africa Refinery is being developed as part of Kenya’s plans to expand domestic refining capacity and strengthen the country’s energy infrastructure. The project is expected to serve markets beyond Kenya, although its financing, crude supply arrangements and supporting infrastructure remain important considerations as the project moves toward construction.

Ruto’s Lagos visit also comes as his administration promotes the refinery project as a major industrial investment for Kenya and the wider region. The planned September 30 groundbreaking is expected to mark the next stage of the Lamu project.

The Dangote refinery, meanwhile, has become a major component of Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector. The facility is located within the Lekki Free Trade Zone and has a stated capacity of 650,000 barrels per day.

Ruto’s visit provided an opportunity for the Kenyan president to examine the Nigerian project as Kenya prepares to develop its own large-scale refinery and associated downstream industries.