Africa-Press – South-Sudan. The President of Kenya has said a proposed refinery would process crude oil from across the region, including South Sudan with Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote expressing readiness to fund the project.
Speaking at a regional infrastructure financing conference in Nairobi this week attended by Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, William Ruto said the refinery, to be built in Tanga, is intended to benefit all participating countries by integrating their oil resources into a single processing hub.
“We are discussing that we are going to have a joint refinery in Tanga to benefit all of us,” he said. “That refinery is going to take on board the oil from DRC, the oil from Kenya, the oil from South Sudan, the oil from Uganda.”
Ruto added that the project would involve constructing a short pipeline linking Tanga to Mombasa, allowing refined products to move through an existing pipeline jointly owned by Kenya and Uganda. “So all our assets become profitable,” he said.
The proposal is seen as significant for South Sudan, which relies heavily on oil exports and faces high transportation and processing costs. A regional refinery could help reduce those costs and improve access to refined petroleum products.
Meanwhile, Aliko Dangote has pledged support for the project, expressing readiness to help finance and deliver it within a set timeline. “If we agree with the governments here about the refinery, we will lead and we’ll make sure that refinery is built within the next four or five years,” he said.
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