Dangote’s African refinery ambitions to take centre stage at Mining Indaba

Aliko Dangote, president and CEO of Dangote Group, will headline the Investing in African Mining Indaba 2027 in Cape Town, with discussions expected to focus on the role of African businesses, financial institutions and long-term capital in developing industries around the continent’s natural resources.

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Dangote’s participation comes as his group advances major industrial projects across Africa, including a US$16 billion (R262.51 billion), 700 000 barrels-per-day petroleum refinery in Lamu, Kenya. The project, launched alongside Kenyan President William Ruto on 30 September 2026, is targeted for completion by 2030.

It follows the group’s US$20 billion (R328.1 billion) Dangote Petroleum Refinery in Lagos, Nigeria, which has a capacity of 700 000 barrels per day. Expansion plans are expected to increase its capacity to approximately 1.4 million barrels per day by 2029.

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Dangote says Africa needs to move beyond exporting raw materials and importing finished products by investing in domestic processing and manufacturing capacity.

“No nation has achieved lasting prosperity by exporting raw materials and importing finished goods. Africa must process what it extracts and build the industries that turn its mineral wealth into jobs, infrastructure and manufacturing at home.”

The industrialist’s contribution to the conference will examine how African businesses can develop the capacity to undertake increasingly complex projects, and how local capital and institutions can support industrial development.

He adds that this requires businesses with the scale to execute projects and long-term African capital prepared to support them.

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The director of government and institutional partnerships at Mining Indaba, Zeinab El-Sayed, says that greater attention needs to be given to the institutions capable of delivering large-scale projects.

“We spend a lot of time talking about the projects Africa needs. We spend less time talking about the institutions capable of delivering them,” she says.

The 2027 conference, held under the theme Stronger Together: Partnerships in Practice, will take place from 8-11 February 2027. It will bring together government leaders, mining companies, investors, financial institutions and businesses across the mining value chain.

*Phenyo Selinda is a Moneyweb intern