Dangote to Lead Tanzania Refinery Project as East Africa Pushes to Cut Fuel Imports
Aliko Dangote has pledged to support the development of a new oil refinery in Tanzania, as African leaders intensify efforts to reduce dependence on fuel imports from the Middle East amid ongoing geopolitical tensions.
According to William Ruto, the proposed refinery will be built in the port city of Tanga and connected to Mombasa via a regional pipeline network.
The facility is expected to process crude oil from regional producers, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Sudan, positioning it as a shared energy infrastructure project for East Africa.
Dangote stated that his group will lead the project’s execution, targeting completion within four to five years.
He added that the refinery could follow the model of the Dangote Refinery in Lagos, which recently reached full operational capacity and has contributed to Nigeria’s fuel self-sufficiency.
The Lagos-based refinery currently the world’s largest single-train facility with a capacity of 650,000 barrels per day is expected to expand to around 1.4 million barrels per day, strengthening Nigeria’s position as a key fuel supplier in West Africa.
Although Africa produces roughly 7% of global crude oil, the continent’s refining capacity has declined significantly over the past two decades, increasing reliance on imported refined products.
This vulnerability has become more pronounced amid disruptions in global supply chains linked to tensions in the Persian Gulf.
East African countries remain particularly exposed. Kenya, for instance, has recently renewed supply agreements with major Gulf energy companies, including Saudi Aramco, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, and Emirates National Oil Company.
However, the Dangote Refinery has already begun to ease some of this dependence. In March alone, it exported 12 cargoes of refined petroleum products to countries including Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Tanzania, Ghana, and Togo, totaling approximately 456,000 tons.
This rise in exports signals Nigeria’s re-emergence in regional fuel markets, increasingly as a supplier rather than a major importer.
The proposed Tanzania refinery aligns with Dangote’s broader $40 billion expansion strategy and complements regional infrastructure projects, including the pipeline linking Uganda’s oil fields to Tanzania’s coastline. Yoweri Museveni has indicated that Uganda will supply crude to the project while continuing plans for its own domestic refinery.
