Dangote buys 25% of Kenya Pipeline for $327m as $16bn Lamu refinery plan takes shape

Aliko Dangote has acquired a 25 per cent stake in Kenya Pipeline Company for approximately $327 million, extending his energy business deeper into East Africa. The deal was announced on Wednesday, October 21, 2026, at the Financial Times Africa Summit in London.

“We bought 25 per cent of their pipeline network for the distribution of petroleum products,” Dangote said at the summit, according to Reuters. The purchase gives him a foothold in the transportation and distribution of petroleum products in Kenya, complementing a refinery he is planning in Lamu.

What the pipeline deal covers

The acquisition comes as Kenya looks for private capital to shore up its energy infrastructure and lift government revenue. On Tuesday, President William Ruto said private investors had bought a 25 per cent stake in the country's pipeline network from public entities, but did not name the buyers.

Earlier this year, Kenya sold a 65 per cent stake in Kenya Pipeline Company through an initial public offering, its first major share sale in two decades. The government went to the market to raise funds amid limited fiscal space.

For Dangote, the stake adds a distribution arm to a regional energy play that already includes refining. His 650,000-barrel-per-day refinery in Lagos has become a major player in Nigeria's domestic petroleum market.

The $16 billion Lamu refinery

The pipeline investment follows the September 30 groundbreaking ceremony for a proposed 700,000-barrel-per-day refinery in Lamu, Kenya, which Dangote launched alongside President Ruto.

The $16 billion project is designed to mirror parts of his Nigerian refinery business and expand refining capacity in East Africa. Dangote said the plant would be commissioned within 40 months of the groundbreaking.

“We will come back here and commission this refinery in 40 months from today,” he said.

He said the facility would process about 700,000 barrels of crude oil daily and generate 1,000 megawatts of electricity. It is also expected to produce one million tonnes of polypropylene and base oil, and to supply at least 20 per cent of the jet fuel consumed in Europe and the United Kingdom.

Why it matters

The two projects show Dangote pushing beyond his home market into other African economies. With holdings in both refining and distribution, he is positioning his energy business to take part in several stages of the petroleum supply chain across the continent.

Kenya is also opening its state assets to private buyers, a shift that gives investors like Dangote room to enter markets that were previously closed. For Nigerian businesses watching the move, it is a signal that regional expansion is now part of the growth plan for the country's largest operators.

Meanwhile, Dangote Group has begun a ₦1.83 trillion upgrade of Niger State's 401-kilometre Lambata-Bida-Mokwa-Makera-Kontagora highway. The company will recover eligible construction costs through tax credits under the federal government's infrastructure investment scheme, with construction starting at four locations.