DANGOTE’S KSh2 TRILLION LAMU BET: HOW KENYA’S BIGGEST FOREIGN INVESTMENT STACKS UP AGAINST GLOBAL GIANTS
By Jeff Kizzilah Digital Editor
Kenya has entered a new chapter in attracting large-scale foreign investment following the groundbreaking of Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote’s proposed $16 billion (more than KSh2 trillion) East Africa Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals project in Lamu County.
The project has been described by Reuters as Kenya’s largest-ever foreign direct investment, placing the country at the centre of one of Africa’s most ambitious energy and industrial projects.
The planned refinery will have a capacity of approximately 700,000 barrels per day and is expected to supply petroleum products to Kenya and other East African markets. The project is also expected to include a 1,000-megawatt power plant, while Dangote has said regional governments could collectively take a 30 per cent stake.
Dangote’s investment comes at a time when Kenya has continued to attract major international corporations across different sectors.
Among the notable transactions is Japan’s Asahi Group Holdings’ approximately $2.3 billion acquisition of Diageo’s 65 per cent stake in East African Breweries Limited (EABL). Kenya’s Competition Authority approved the transaction in September 2026, subject to conditions.
Other major international investors with longstanding operations in Kenya include Diageo, Vodafone/Vodacom, the Aga Khan Group, Toyota Group, Bharti Airtel, Coca-Cola and major international cement companies.
However, the scale of the proposed Lamu refinery places the Dangote project in a different category in terms of announced investment value. At $16 billion, it is several times the value of the recent Asahi-EABL transaction.
The Lamu project is also designed to go beyond petroleum refining, with the wider complex expected to support industries including petrochemicals, base oils and bitumen production. Dangote has said the project could create more than 50,000 jobs and strengthen regional energy security.
The development also brings international expertise into Kenya. India’s Engineers India Limited has secured a contract worth more than $450 million for project management and engineering services, while US-based Honeywell Technologies has been selected to provide technology, engineering services and equipment.
The refinery is expected to serve markets stretching across East Africa, potentially positioning Lamu as an important energy and industrial hub.
With construction now officially launched, attention will shift to project execution, financing, employment, local economic participation and the refinery’s eventual impact on Kenya’s energy and industrial landscape.
