Construction of the refinery could begin in October 2026, making it one of the largest private-sector investments in Kenya and East Africa.
Dangote said 30% of the project’s funding will come from equity, while the remaining 70% will be financed through loans.
In an interview with the BBC, he said, “The financing will be 30% equity and the rest will be debt. We have no problem raising the money.”
This means lenders would provide approximately $11.2 billion, while Dangote and other investors would contribute about $4.8 billion in equity.
The financing structure differs from that used to build the Dangote refinery in Lagos, Nigeria, where roughly half of the project’s funding came from debt and the other half from equity. The Nigerian project cost approximately $20 billion.
Dangote said the Kenyan refinery was initially estimated to cost $17 billion, but the projected cost has since fallen to about $16 billion. He attributed the reduction to plans to complete construction within four years and lessons learned from the Nigerian refinery project.
“We initially thought it would cost $17 billion, but it will cost less than that, around $16 billion,” he said.
The refinery is expected to have a processing capacity of 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day, exceeding the 650,000-barrel-per-day capacity of Dangote’s refinery in Lagos.
Dangote said construction would begin shortly after the official groundbreaking ceremony for the project.
“Once we have the groundbreaking ceremony, work will start very soon,” he said.
The refinery is expected to supply petroleum products to Kenya as well as other markets across East and North Africa, including Egypt.
Kenyan President William Ruto has said the country plans to acquire a stake in the project through a state infrastructure development fund, as part of efforts to reduce the country’s reliance on imported petroleum products.
Dangote said Kenya would need to provide land, support efforts to raise financing and protect the refinery from cheaper petroleum products imported from countries such as India and Russia.
“No refinery anywhere in the world can survive without such protection. If we reach an agreement, we can start this year,” he said.
The project comes as East African countries continue to explore ways to reduce their dependence on imported petroleum products, particularly those sourced from the Middle East.
Forbes estimates Dangote’s net worth at $28.5 billion, with much of his wealth coming from investments in cement, sugar, fertilizer and oil refining.
The businessman has pledged to use his wealth and investments to help address Africa’s economic challenges, starting with his home country, Nigeria, where he owns several major industrial businesses.
