President William Ruto has said the planned Dangote East Africa Refinery in Lamu will create up to 60,000 direct and indirect jobs while positioning the coastal county as a major regional industrial hub.
Ruto made the remarks on Wednesday, September 30, during the groundbreaking ceremony of the $16 billion (about KSh2 trillion) refinery at Mokowe, Lamu County. The facility is designed to process up to 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day and serve Kenya and the wider East African market.
The President said the investment was intended to address a longstanding gap in Africa’s energy sector, where crude oil is produced on the continent but much of its processing and value addition takes place elsewhere.
According to Ruto, Africa produced about 6.8 million barrels of crude oil per day in 2024 while consuming approximately 4.5 million barrels of refined petroleum products daily. He said the refinery would support efforts to retain more of the value generated from African resources within the continent.
Kenya spent KSh530 billion on petroleum product imports last year, according to the President. He cautioned, however, that the refinery would not immediately eliminate the import bill because crude oil would still have to be sourced and refined products delivered at competitive prices.
The refinery is also expected to form the centre of a wider industrial ecosystem around Lamu Port and the LAPSSET Corridor.
Ruto said the project would create demand for transport, engineering, construction, logistics, accommodation, food services, maintenance and other businesses. The government estimates that as many as 60,000 direct and indirect jobs could be created, with construction expected to generate significant wage income for workers.
The project’s scale extends beyond refining. The President said the development envisages up to 1,000 megawatts of power generation, with part of the electricity potentially serving needs outside the refinery.
He described the investment as a project linked to energy security, industrialisation and regional integration.
Ruto also linked the refinery to planned urban and infrastructure development in Lamu. The government intends to advance planning for a new mainland town and examine how the Affordable Housing Programme could help accommodate workers and families expected to move into the area.
He further said the government would pursue plans to improve water supply from the Tana River to Lamu, citing the county’s longstanding water challenges and the additional demand expected from industrialisation and population growth.
The President acknowledged that the project comes with concerns from residents over land, employment, local businesses, fishing, water, mangroves, the coastline and Lamu’s cultural heritage.
He said land matters would be handled lawfully and fairly, while environmental and social impacts would be assessed and safeguards enforced during both construction and operation.
Those issues remain significant as the project moves forward. Reuters reported on September 29 that a Kenyan court ruling over a land-rights dispute could affect some site activities, although Dangote Group said it would proceed with the groundbreaking ceremony.
The project has also attracted international engineering and technology partners. Reuters reported on Wednesday that Engineers India Limited has secured a $450 million engineering contract, while Honeywell Technologies is involved in engineering services, equipment and licensing for the refinery.
Ruto said the next phase would require financing, infrastructure development, workforce training, crude supply and securing markets before the refinery can become operational.
He added that the government would work with technical and vocational institutions and universities to prepare welders, technicians, engineers and managers for the project, with young people from Lamu, neighbouring counties and other parts of Kenya expected to compete for opportunities.
The refinery is therefore expected to be measured not only by its planned 700,000-barrel-per-day capacity but also by the jobs, businesses, skills and infrastructure generated around it.
For the government and Dangote Group, the immediate task will be translating the groundbreaking into construction while addressing land, environmental and community concerns and securing the crude supply and infrastructure required for a project of its scale.
