Afreximbank hails Dangote Lamu refinery, says project can boost Africa’s energy security

Africa, Business

NAIROBI, Kenya (NPA) — The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has congratulated the Kenyan Government and President William Samoei Ruto on the groundbreaking of the Dangote oil refinery in Lamu, describing the project as a potential catalyst for expanded refining capacity, regional energy security and greater value addition in Africa.

The approximately $16 billion refinery is planned to process 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day and is expected to create about 60,000 jobs.

According to Afreximbank, the refinery’s intended regional ownership and market reach could position it as a major East African industrial asset, processing crude sourced from African producers, including Uganda, while supplying refined petroleum products to Kenya and other regional markets.

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The bank, in a statement issued on Oct. 1, said large-scale refining capacity could help African economies retain more value from their natural resources, deepen industrial supply chains, generate employment, reduce dependence on imported refined products and create new opportunities for regional exports.

Afreximbank said the project came at a critical time for Africa’s energy security, noting that disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz, the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb had highlighted the vulnerabilities associated with dependence on distant supply chains for strategic commodities.

The bank said expanding refining capacity on the continent was therefore important for industrialisation, intra-African trade and economic resilience.

Dr George Elombi, President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Afreximbank, said the project demonstrated Africa’s ability to finance and develop major industrial assets to meet the needs of its economies.

“The significance of this investment extends well beyond the construction of a refinery. It demonstrates Africa’s capacity to conceive, finance and build major industrial assets that respond directly to the needs of our economies,” Elombi said.

He added that refining more crude within Africa would help retain greater value from natural resources, create jobs and strengthen trade links between African economies.

“Recent disruptions to global energy and shipping routes have reminded us of the cost of dependence. Africa has the capital, the enterprises and the markets to reduce that exposure,” he said.

Afreximbank’s support for Kenya

The Lamu refinery groundbreaking comes amid an expansion of Kenya’s industrial and trade infrastructure, with Afreximbank describing itself as a long-term partner of the Kenyan Government.

In 2023, the bank launched a $3 billion Country Programme for Kenya to support priority public- and private-sector projects covering industrial development and export manufacturing, climate adaptation and irrigation, trade infrastructure, support for small and medium-sized enterprises and initiatives linking Kenyan businesses to regional and continental markets.

The programme includes an $800 million Kenya Climate Change Adaptation Facility supporting irrigation development and agricultural productivity.

Afreximbank is also working with the Kenyan Government and ARISE Integrated Industrial Platforms (Arise IIP) to support the development of the Dongo Kundu Integrated Industrial Park in Mombasa and the Naivasha Special Economic Zone II.

About $1 billion has been earmarked for the two integrated industrial parks, which are expected to support export manufacturing, attract domestic and international investment and strengthen Kenya’s position as an industrial and logistics gateway into East and Central Africa.

Government projections have associated the developments with approximately 140,000 jobs when fully developed.

The bank has also expanded its support for the Vipingo Special Economic Zone in Kilifi County.

In 2025, Afreximbank and KCB Group announced an $800 million financing framework, comprising $500 million from Afreximbank and $300 million from KCB, to support enterprises establishing operations in the zone.

Afreximbank said it had previously disbursed $40 million towards development of the SEZ, with the financing targeting manufacturing, agro-processing, logistics and other value-addition sectors.

Afreximbank, Dangote partnership

Afreximbank also congratulated Aliko Dangote, President and Chief Executive Officer of Dangote Industries Limited, and the Dangote Group for its investments in Africa’s industrial development.

The bank said it had built a longstanding partnership with the Dangote Group focused on industrialisation, value addition and expanding Africa’s productive capacity.

Since 2015, Afreximbank said it had invested approximately $15 billion in the Dangote Group, including major financing for the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals Complex in Nigeria.

In 2025, the bank signed a $1.35 billion financing facility as part of an approximately $4 billion syndicated financing for Dangote Industries Limited.

In 2026, it subsequently underwrote $2.5 billion of a $4 billion senior syndicated term loan for the refinery, representing the largest participation in the syndicate.

Since refining operations began, Afreximbank said it had also provided a $1 billion working-capital facility and served as financial adviser on the Naira-for-Crude initiative.

Elombi said the Dangote Group demonstrated what could be achieved when African ambition was matched by investment at scale.

“African enterprises such as Dangote Industries demonstrate what is possible when African ambition is matched by investment at scale. They turn our natural resources into productive capacity — refineries, factories, supply chains, jobs and products that can be traded across African markets,” he said.

He said Afreximbank was proud to support Dangote Group’s industrial expansion, adding that its decision to extend its industrial footprint into East Africa was important to Africa’s broader economic transformation.

Push for African-refined petroleum

Afreximbank said the interventions formed part of its broader effort to develop an African market for African-refined petroleum.

In 2025, the bank established a $3 billion Revolving Intra-African Oil Import Financing Programme, designed to facilitate approximately $10 billion to $14 billion in intra-African petroleum imports and enable African buyers to source more refined products from refineries operating on the continent.

The bank said globally competitive African enterprises and regional value chains would be essential to realising the objectives of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

It said investments such as the Lamu refinery, alongside Kenya’s emerging industrial parks and special economic zones, could help shift Africa away from dependence on exports of unprocessed commodities and imports of manufactured products towards an economy that increasingly produces, processes and trades within the continent.