Ethiopia, Djibouti and the Dangote Group have unveiled plans to develop a US $660M refined petroleum products pipeline aimed at improving fuel supply and reducing transport costs along one of East Africa’s most important trade corridors.
The project, announced during Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s visit to Djibouti, will be implemented through a partnership between Ethiopian Investment Holdings (EIH) and the Dangote Group. The new infrastructure will connect the Port of Damerjog in Djibouti to Dewele in eastern Ethiopia, a key gateway for fuel imports into the landlocked country.
According to details released by officials, the development will include a 120-kilometre pipeline, approximately 375,000 cubic metres of fuel storage capacity at Damerjog and a further 800,000 cubic metres of storage facilities at Dewele. The pipeline is expected to become operational within 18 months.
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Benefits
Abiy said the project is designed to cut logistics costs, reduce delays and improve the efficiency of fuel transportation between the two countries. Ethiopia relies heavily on Djibouti’s ports for imports, including petroleum products, making the corridor critical to the country’s energy security and economic activity.
The prime minister added that the investment would strengthen supply chain resilience and ensure more reliable fuel deliveries while supporting growing energy demand in Ethiopia. The project was announced alongside Djibouti President Ismail Omar Guelleh and Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote, whose conglomerate is emerging as one of Africa’s largest investors in energy and industrial infrastructure.
The pipeline marks another major expansion of Dangote Group’s footprint across the continent. In Ethiopia, the company is already investing about US $4Bn in a fertiliser production complex, associated pipeline and power generation facilities, as well as a polypropylene packaging plant intended to support the country’s industrialisation agenda. The latest investment also highlights increasing regional efforts to improve energy infrastructure and cross-border trade links. Efficient fuel transport remains a major challenge across East Africa, where road-based supply chains can be costly and vulnerable to disruptions.
The announcement comes as Dangote prepares to launch another landmark energy project in East Africa. The company is expected to break ground next week on a planned 700,000-barrel-per-day refinery and petrochemical complex in Lamu, Kenya, a project expected to transform the region’s petroleum refining capacity and position East Africa as a major energy and petrochemical hub.
