East Africa Eyes Joint Oil Refinery in Tanga Modeled on Dangote's Success

East African countries are coming together to discuss establishing a joint oil refinery at the port of Tanga in Tanzania, inspired by the successful model of Nigeria's Dangote plant. The announcement came from Kenyan President William Ruto on Thursday.

The region currently depends on imported refined petroleum products, primarily from the Middle East, leaving it susceptible to supply disturbances and price volatility. President Ruto emphasized the proposed refinery's strategic importance by stating that it would integrate crude oil resources from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, South Sudan, and Uganda.

Aliko Dangote, Africa’s wealthiest individual, also attended the infrastructure financing conference in Nairobi. He expressed readiness to lead the development of an East African refinery on the condition of receiving governmental backing. He suggested replicating his extensive 650,000-barrel-per-day Nigerian refinery model in East Africa to enhance regional petroleum self-sufficiency.