Dangote selects Honeywell for Kenya's $16B refinery amid legal challenge

Aliko Dangote has chosen Honeywell Technologies to provide engineering services, licensing and equipment for a planned 700,000-barrels-per-day refinery in Lamu County, Kenya. The $16 billion project was broken ground recently by Dangote and Kenya’s President William Ruto, even as conservationists and affected landowners challenge the development in court. The refinery is slated to produce diesel, petrol and jet fuel for Kenya and export to other East African countries.

The deal builds on Honeywell’s ongoing work at Dangote’s Nigerian refinery, where the US firm is helping to double the Lagos plant’s capacity from 700,000 to 1.4 million barrels per day by 2028. Honeywell Technologies President Rajesh Gattupalli said the existing relationship could accelerate the Kenyan project by applying proven large‑train engineering designs.

For Nigerians, the Kenyan venture signals Dangote’s push to extend refining dominance beyond Nigeria, potentially reshaping regional fuel markets and creating new investment avenues. It also underscores the strategic value of the Nigerian refinery upgrades, which serve as a model for continental expansion.

Will Dangote’s Kenyan refinery ease East Africa’s fuel deficit and boost regional trade, or will prolonged legal disputes delay its benefits for consumers and investors across the bloc?

SOURCE: https://nairametrics.com/2026/09/30/dangote-selects-honeywell-for-16-billion-kenya-refinery/