'We are not scared of court': Dangote shrugs off oil refinery suit

President William Ruto and Dangote Group President Aliko Dangote unveil the plaque during the groundbreaking ceremony for the Sh2.2 trillion Dangote East Africa Refinery in Lamu on Wednesday, September 30. [PCS]

President William Ruto and businessman Aliko Dangote have backed the construction of the Sh2.2 trillion Lamu refinery despite a court battle over land earmarked for the project.

The two spoke on Wednesday as Kenya broke ground on the refinery, a day after residents protested in Lamu over land, compensation, public participation and jobs linked to the investment.

Ruto warned against attempts to use court cases, brokers or demands for money to frustrate investors, insisting that the government would support the project.

“Investors are partners with us, are our friends. What Dangote is doing is more than investment for money but development for our region,” Ruto noted.

“I want to assure you nobody is going to extort from you anything. No one will be given anything for free,” he added.

Dangote has also maintained that the legal challenge will not stop the project, although the dispute over the land could affect some activities at the site.

More than 130 residents have moved to court over the land, while protesters took to the streets on Tuesday to demand that their concerns be addressed before the project proceeds.

The Malindi Environment and Land Court has ordered parties to maintain the status quo on the disputed land until October 14 as the legal challenge continues.

Dangote, however, dismissed concerns that the court case would scare him away from the project, saying he was prepared to face those seeking to challenge the investment.

“We are not really scared of people taking us to court. Anybody who wants to cause trouble we are ready for his trouble and we will give him headache,” Dangote said.

“Nothing transformative was ever built by the people who were frightened by the size of the challenge,” he added.

 The dispute has introduced a major hurdle for a project that the government and Dangote Group have presented as a regional industrial investment.

Ruto, however, used the groundbreaking to insist that the refinery would proceed and urged investors to view Kenya as a partner.

The President also criticised people he accused of sponsoring court cases against the project and warned that brokers and opportunists would not be allowed to interfere with investors.

The refinery is designed to process up to 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day and supply refined petroleum products to Kenya and other markets in East Africa.

“This is bigger than a refinery. It is an investment in energy security, industrialisation and regional integration,” Ruto observed.

The project is also expected to generate up to 1,000 megawatts of electricity, part of which would serve the wider region.

Ruto linked the investment to Kenya's dependence on imported petroleum products, saying the country spent Sh530 billion last year on petroleum imports.

He cautioned that the refinery would not eliminate the import bill overnight because Kenya would still need crude supplies and the plant would have to produce and deliver fuel at competitive prices.

“A refinery will not make that bill disappear overnight. Crude must still be put, fuel must still be produced and delivered at competitive price,” Ruto explained.

He said the refinery would create demand for transporters, engineers, contractors and service providers while supporting the growth of petrochemical and manufacturing industries around Lamu.

“The refinery will be the anchor around it,” Ruto said.

Ruto described the investment as a partnership between government and the private sector, with the state providing policy, infrastructure and regulation while private investors mobilise capital and technical expertise.

He also confirmed that the government would take a stake in the refinery by deploying public assets and using the National Infrastructure Fund.

“We do not want anything for free. We are going to deploy our assets, whether it is land and all the other assets and we are going to use the National Infrastructure Fund to invest in this refinery,” Ruto stressed.

The President said Kenyans would also have an opportunity to buy shares in the refinery through the Nairobi Securities Exchange once the planned investment structure is made available.

“And Kenyans of all walks, I want to ask you, you have an opportunity of a lifetime to invest in this refinery,” Ruto told the gathering.

He said the project would help Africa retain more value from its natural resources by processing raw materials closer to the markets where they are consumed.

“Africa has supplied raw materials while others capture the processing, the manufacturing, the jobs and the commercial benefits,” Ruto argued.

The groundbreaking was attended by several African leaders, including Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, Uganda President Yoweri Museveni and Benin President Patrice Talon.

Dangote has pledged to complete the refinery within 40 months.

The project is expected to anchor wider industrial development around Lamu Port and create opportunities for businesses linked to transport, energy, construction and manufacturing.