The President and Chief Executive of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, has unveiled plans to determine an intensive petroleum distribution network across Africa, backed by investments in pipelines, storage amenities and strategic provide corridors.
The disclosure was contained in a press release issued by the Dangote Group on Wednesday, October 21, 2026.
Dangote mentioned the Group was increasing its petroleum distribution infrastructure across East, Central and Southern Africa to deal with provide challenges, cut back logistical bottlenecks and strengthen the continent’s vitality safety.
He additionally known as on African governments to guard home industries towards unfair international competitors, arguing that dependence on imported merchandise may undermine native manufacturing and employment.
Dangote Expands Africa’s Petroleum Distribution Network
Speaking in a dialog with Financial Times journalist David Pilling, Dangote mentioned the Group had acquired a 25% stake in a petroleum merchandise pipeline network in Kenya and was pursuing further infrastructure tasks in Ethiopia, Cameroon and Namibia.
He described the growth as a part of a broader technique to determine an built-in African vitality provide system connecting main refining centres with markets which have traditionally trusted imported petroleum merchandise and fragmented distribution networks.
- “We are very aggressive with that,” Dangote mentioned when requested in regards to the Group’s plans to develop depots, pipelines and different petroleum distribution infrastructure.
- “Just let me tell you, yesterday, with the support from the President of Kenya, we bought 25 per cent of the pipeline network for the distribution of petroleum products,” he mentioned.
Dangote additionally outlined plans for a distribution hall linking Djibouti with Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, together with tank farms to assist the storage and motion of petroleum merchandise. He mentioned one other venture in Cameroon was approaching completion, whereas Namibia had been recognized as a strategic location for growth into Southern Africa.
According to Dangote, Namibia’s maritime proximity to the Dangote Petroleum Refinery in Lagos would assist an environment friendly provide route into the area.
- “From our refinery to Namibia is just about four days of steaming,” he mentioned.
The Group plans to move refined petroleum merchandise from Lagos to Namibia for onward distribution to markets together with Botswana and South Africa. Dangote additionally outlined a proposed hall by Zimbabwe and Zambia, geared toward extending the network across a number of African markets.
Dangote Plans 700,000-Barrel Kenyan Refinery
Alongside its distribution infrastructure growth, the Group plans to determine one other refinery in Lamu, Kenya, with a proposed capability of roughly 700,000 barrels per day.
Dangote mentioned the funding was knowledgeable by East Africa’s industrial and mining actions, rising vitality necessities and persistent challenges in accessing diesel and different petroleum merchandise. He defined that the proposed refinery would supply crude oil from completely different markets quite than rely completely on manufacturing from Uganda or Kenya.
- According to him, the choice of Lamu adopted technical assessments of a number of potential areas, with deep-water entry, marine amenities and adequate water sources among the many key issues.
- Dangote mentioned the funding resolution was reached inside 4 months, though he alleged that business pursuits had tried to frustrate the venture by authorized proceedings shortly earlier than its public unveiling. He maintained that the expertise mirrored the extraordinary competitors and business pursuits throughout the worldwide petroleum trade.
Beyond vitality infrastructure, Dangote known as on African governments to guard home producers from unfair international competitors, arguing that unrestricted imports may undermine the continent’s industrial improvement.
- “If America is now saying, no, we are going to protect our industries, who are we in Africa not to protect our own industries?” he requested.
Dangote warned that permitting imported merchandise to displace home manufacturing amounted to “exporting our jobs out of the continent, importing poverty into the continent.”
He additionally disclosed that the Group had budgeted roughly $50 billion for investments between 2026 and 2030, describing the programme as a part of a broader effort to display Africa’s capability to execute large-scale industrial tasks.
Dangote Targets Africa’s Industrial Transformation
Dangote mentioned the Group’s investments had been supposed not solely to increase its operations but in addition to encourage different African entrepreneurs and buyers to take part in the continent’s industrial transformation.
- He recognized unreliable electrical energy provide as a serious impediment to industrialisation, significantly in mining and mineral processing, the place insufficient energy can restrict nations’ potential to course of pure sources regionally earlier than exporting them.
- Dangote mentioned roughly 650 million Africans lacked entry to electrical energy, stressing that addressing the problem would create alternatives for manufacturing, employment and financial diversification.
He expressed confidence that African governments and entrepreneurs had been more and more recognising the necessity to take duty for the continent’s industrial future.
