Kenyan President Ruto visits Dangote refinery

Kenyan President William Ruto has visited Lagos to tour the Dangote Refinery ahead of the planned groundbreaking ceremony for Kenya’s proposed East Africa Refinery in Lamu.

Ruto arrived at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport on Friday and was received by Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, alongside other senior Nigerian government officials.

The Kenyan president was accompanied by First Lady Rachel Ruto and senior officials involved in the East Africa Refinery project.

The visit came five days before the planned groundbreaking ceremony scheduled for September 30 in Lamu, with the tour of Dangote’s facility expected to provide an opportunity for the Kenyan delegation to gain insight into the operations of the major Nigerian refinery.

‎The planned Lamu facility, with a projected capacity of 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day, is expected to become a major component of Kenya’s strategy to expand refining capacity and strengthen petroleum supply in the region.

‎The Lagos visit came after Ruto met Dangote and Africa Finance Corporation chief executive Samaila Zubairu on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York earlier in the week.

‎The discussions focused on financing and final preparations for the Lamu project.

‎“We are ready to break ground on the East Africa refinery in Lamu, a transformative project that will enhance the region’s energy security, deepen local value addition, create jobs and advance our industrialization agenda,” Ruto said after the New York meeting.

‎The proposed refinery is expected to process crude from Kenya’s oilfields in Lokichar, Turkana County, and supply refined petroleum products to markets in East and Central Africa.

‎The project is being developed with Dangote’s involvement and support from the Africa Finance Corporation.

Current reports have placed its investment value at between $15 billion and $17 billion, equivalent to roughly Sh2 trillion at prevailing exchange rates.

‎The September 30 groundbreaking is expected to bring together regional leaders and other key stakeholders, with preparations already under way in Lamu.

‎The Lagos refinery tour gives Ruto an opportunity to inspect Dangote’s existing refining operation before the Kenyan project moves into its construction phase.

‎Upon arrival at the refinery, Ruto was taken on a guided tour of the sprawling facility by Dangote and other senior company officials.

‎The tour covered key sections of the refinery and the adjoining petrochemicals complex, giving the President an overview of the plant’s operations, processing capacity and infrastructure.

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