President William Ruto has announced that construction of the East African regional oil refinery linked to Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote is set to begin later this year.

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Speaking at the National Prayer Breakfast in Nairobi on Thursday, May 28, Ruto said construction is set to begin, even as controversy continues to surround the refinery's exact location.

"We have agreed that this year we are going to have a refinery here," Ruto stated.

According to the President, the move is aimed at ensuring that oil from Turkana and the wider East African region is refined locally, rather than relying heavily on imported petroleum products.

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"We have a long-term plan for the fuel crisis. We have found a mechanism on how to get our fuel in Turkana and the rest of the region to be refined here in our region," he added.

During the address, the head of state also revealed that Kenya, the favourite to host the Ksh 2.5 trillion project , had initiated talks with other East African leaders after meeting with Dangote.

Ruto disclosed that about six months ago, he dispatched a team to study successful refinery models abroad, where they encountered Dangote's operations in Nigeria.

"When I sent my team about six months ago to look around, they came across Aliko Dangote and what he is doing. They came back to me, and I reached out to colleagues in the region," Ruto stated.

The revelations come even as the Dangote-led team is still doing feasibility studies to identify a suitable location for the planned project.

Initially, the Nigerian billionaire had identified the Tanga area of Tanzania due to the crude pipeline route. Still, he later shifted his focus to Mombasa port.

📰 Source: Kenyans.co.ke