Dangote Vows to Build Nigeria-Style Oil Refinery in East Africa

WATCH: Dangote is in talks with Kenya and Uganda to build a crude oil refinery in Tanzania. He said the refinery would be “built within the next four or five years” if all sides agree on the project.Source: Bloomberg

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By Jennifer Zabasajja and Helen Nyambura

April 23, 2026 at 10:58 AM UTC

Updated on

April 23, 2026 at 11:56 AM UTC

Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man, pledged to help East African nations build a new oil refinery in Tanzania, as the war in Iran exposes the continent’s over-reliance on fuel imports from the Middle East.

The project will include a pipeline that links the Kenyan port city of Mombasa to the northeastern Tanzanian harbor of Tanga, where the facility will be situated, Kenyan President William Ruto said at an Africa Finance Corp. summit in Nairobi on Thursday. The refinery will process crude from countries including the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan, he said.