L-R, Group Vice President, Oil & Gas and Fertiliser, Dangote Industries Limited, Devakumar Edwin; president/CE, Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote; Group Vice President, Business Units, Dangote Industries Limited, Olakunle Alake; Kenya President, Dr. William Samoel Ruto; his wife, Rachael, During the Kenya President’s Visit to Dangote Petroleum Refinery, Petrochemicals and Fertiliser Plant Lekki, Lagos on September 25, 2026.
By Peace Udugba — The Daily Torch Media
Kenyan President William Samoei Ruto has described the Dangote Petroleum Refinery as a “masterpiece of science, engineering and art” after touring the 700,000-barrels-per-day facility in Lagos.
Ruto’s visit comes as Dangote Group accelerates its expansion across Africa, including plans for a proposed $17 billion, 700,000-barrels-per-day refinery and petrochemical complex in Lamu, Kenya.
The Kenyan president said seeing the Dangote refinery firsthand had strengthened his confidence in the proposed East African project, which is expected to serve as a major regional energy and industrial hub.
“Coming here and seeing it for myself, I can confirm that I have seen a masterpiece of science, engineering and art. To my brother Aliko, congratulations. I always knew Nigerians to be very brave people and go-getters, but I did not anticipate that it was at this scale,” Ruto said.
The Kenyan leader said preparations had been concluded for the groundbreaking of the Lamu refinery, adding that the project would be developed as a regional asset rather than solely for Kenya.
“This is not a Kenyan refinery; it is going to be a regional refinery. We are positioning our continent as an emerging growth centre,” he said.
According to Ruto, the project is expected to support industrialisation, create jobs, strengthen engineering and technical capacity, improve energy security and deepen economic integration across East Africa.
He also said the Kenyan government had secured the required land and was working to remove administrative bottlenecks that could delay the project.
“The Government of Kenya is 100 per cent behind this project. We have secured the required land and are working to ensure that we spend our time building rather than navigating administrative delays,” Ruto said.
The president also praised Dangote Group President and Chief Executive, Aliko Dangote, for his detailed understanding of the refinery’s technical and operational processes.
Dangote targets $36bn revenue
During the visit, Dangote Group Chief Strategy Officer, Aliyu Suleiman, disclosed that the conglomerate generated approximately $17 billion in revenue in the first half of 2026 and is targeting $36 billion for the full year.
The projected 2026 revenue would represent a doubling of the approximately $18 billion recorded in 2025, according to the company.
“The revenues of the Group have grown significantly over the last five years. From $18 billion last year, we are on track to get to $36 billion this year. Our half-year revenue is already about $17 billion,” Suleiman said.
He attributed the growth to investments across cement, sugar, fertiliser, petroleum refining, upstream oil and gas and other strategic businesses.
Suleiman said the group’s expansion strategy is anchored on its Vision 2030 programme, which seeks to broaden Dangote’s industrial footprint across Africa and build globally competitive businesses.
He disclosed that Dangote Group invested approximately $50 billion in capital expenditure between 2020 and 2025 and plans to invest about twice that amount over the next five years as it expands across the continent.
$17bn Lamu refinery project
Suleiman described the proposed Lamu refinery as a major component of Dangote Group’s ambition to build a $100 billion African industrial enterprise.
“The East African refinery in Kenya is going to be a key component of our journey and our dream to get to $100 billion. It is going to be a major contributor,” he said.
The group’s expansion plans extend beyond refining to port and gas infrastructure, LNG, upstream oil and gas, power generation, mining and other strategic industrial investments.
As part of preparations for the Kenyan project, Dangote Group has signed a contract worth more than $450 million with Engineers India Limited (EIL) for project management consultancy and engineering, procurement and construction management services.
EIL previously worked on the Dangote Petroleum Refinery project in Lagos and is also involved in its expansion. The $450 million contract covers consultancy and project-management services and is separate from the much larger estimated cost of constructing the Lamu refinery.
Once completed, the proposed Lamu facility is expected to process 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day and contribute to increased fuel production and energy security in East Africa.
Dangote refinery expansion
Meanwhile, Dangote Group is progressing plans to expand the Lagos refinery’s processing capacity to approximately 1.4 million barrels per day through the addition of a new crude distillation unit.
The expansion is expected to increase Nigeria’s refining capacity and strengthen the country’s position in the regional and international refined petroleum products market.
The Lamu project, combined with the expansion of the Lagos refinery, represents a major extension of Dangote Group’s refining and energy ambitions from West Africa into East Africa.
The developments also underline the group’s broader strategy of using large-scale industrial investments to expand its presence across the African continent.
