AFC REPORT: AFRICA NEEDS TWO MORE DANGOTE-SIZED REFINERIES Dangote Pledges to Build One in East Africa

Philip
7 days ago
2 min read

DANGOTE PLANS AFRICA'S BIGGEST-EVER IPO: Refinery to List on Multiple African Exchanges — AFRICA NEEDS TWO MORE DANGOTE-SIZED REFINERIES

70% of Africa's refined fuel is imported; demand to surge 56% by 2040; $4 trillion in domestic capital sitting idle

Africa will need at least two additional refineries the size of Dangote's Lagos facility to meet its own fuel demand by 2040, according to a major new infrastructure report released Thursday as Aliko Dangote pledged at the same summit to build a 650,000-barrel-per-day plant in East Africa.

The Africa Finance Corporation's State of Africa's Infrastructure Report 2026, presented at the Africa We Build Summit in Nairobi by AFC Chief Economist Rita Babihuga-Nsanze, found that approximately 70% of Africa's refined fuel consumption is currently imported exposing the continent to global supply shocks and transport chokepoints. Demand is projected to grow by 56% by 2040, creating an import gap of 86 million tonnes equivalent to at least two additional Dangote-scale refineries.

Dangote, speaking directly to Kenyan President William Ruto and Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni at the summit, said: "If they will support the refinery, we'll build the identical one that we have in Nigeria 650,000 barrels." The pledge came as East Africa's vulnerability to Gulf supply disruptions has been sharply exposed by the US-Iran conflict and Hormuz closure this year.

AFC President Samaila Zubairu stated that Africa's core challenge is no longer a shortage of capital. The continent holds more than $4 trillion in domestic banking, pension, insurance, and sovereign fund assets but lacks investment channels to deploy that capital into long-term infrastructure. External financing has also declined sharply, with official development assistance to Africa falling 23% in 2025 the largest annual drop on record.

The report criticised Africa's persistent "pit-to-port" model exporting raw commodities while importing finished products and called for integrated systems linking resources, energy, and markets to enable real industrialisation.