Tanzania Courts Dangote for Fertilizer and Power after Kenya wins Refinery

Having lost the race to host Aliko Dangote’s proposed East African oil refinery to neighboring Kenya, Tanzania is aggressively pivoting to secure alternative investments from the Nigerian industrialist.

A high-level Tanzanian delegation recently visited Dangote’s Lagos headquarters to pitch a sprawling infrastructure and energy portfolio. Moving beyond preliminary talks with President Samia Suluhu Hassan, the government is now seeking firm commitments for a 2,000-megawatt coal-fired power plant, a major urea fertilizer facility, and a 40-kilometer (25-mile) transport corridor linking the coastal port of Mtwara to Lake Malawi.

The diplomatic offensive follows a significant economic setback. In June, Dangote Industries selected Lamu, Kenya, over Tanzania’s Tanga port for a proposed 700,000-barrel-a-day regional refinery. The Kenyan project, slated for a three-year construction timeline, will be partly financed by the upcoming US$5 billion initial public offering of Dangote’s flagship Nigerian refinery in October.

Yet, losing the refinery does not equate to losing the investor. Dangote already operates a cement plant in Tanzania and plans to build 20 fertilizer blending plants across Africa by 2028. For Dar es Salaam, domestic fertilizer production is a strategic imperative aimed at boosting agrarian yields and reducing import reliance.

As African nations fiercely compete for the conglomerate’s next wave of capital, a regional division of labor is emerging. Kenya may have secured East Africa’s energy crown, but Tanzania is positioning itself to become the region’s industrial and agricultural engine.