The delegates explored ways to advance oil refining.

With an aim to boost mutual partnership between the petroleum sector and international financial institutions, Karim Badawi, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, held a meeting with a delegation from the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), including Sameh Shenouda, CEO and chief investment officer at the corporation, and Ato Giazi, senior director of product solutions

Salah Abdel Karim, CEO of the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) was also present during the discourse.

The delegates explored financing opportunities for projects to advance local production, particularly in the field of oil refining, with the goal of reducing imports and bridging the gap between production and consumption of petroleum products, especially diesel.

The Minister reviewed the Ministry's strategic plan, which sets investment priorities in the areas of research, production, refining, petrochemicals, mining, and green energy. While past investments and production were reassessed, the teams evaluated plans to conduct an aerial survey of mineral deposits for the first time in 40 years, besides considering incentive packages to attract emerging mining companies.

Shenouda affirmed the Corporation’s aspiration to enhance cooperation with Egypt in the petroleum and mining sectors.

The meeting also reviewed new projects to increase local production in the refining sector, including the Suez cooking and diesel production complex project that is currently being implemented. 

Major refinery projects are underway in Africa. (Image source: Adobe Stock)

Major refining projects  are set to transform Africa’s energy landscape and boost self-suffciency

Africa is set to add 1.2mn barrels per day (bpd) of new refining capacity by 2030, representing one of the fastest downstream expansions globally, according to the newly released 2025 OPEC World Oil Outlook.

At the forefront of Africa’s refining expansion is Nigeria’s 650,000-bpd Dangote Refinery, which began operations in 2024 and is already reshaping regional fuel trade dynamics. Further developments include the 200,000-bpd Akwa Ibom Refinery, also in Nigeria, and Angola’s state-driven push to bring online the 200,000-bpd Lobito Refinery and 100,000-bpd Soyo Refinery by 2030.

Uganda’s refining ambitions are taking shape with a 60,000-bpd facility in Hoima, part of the country’s broader Lake Albert basin development plan, while modular refinery projects in Ghana, Guinea-Conakry, the Republic of Congo and additional sites in Nigeria are buiding capacity in markets where infrastructure and financing hurdles persist. In North Africa, Algeria (Hassi Messaoud), Libya (Ubari) and Egypt (Soukhna) are all advancing refinery projects aimed at capturing higher margins, improving domestic supply security and reducing dependency on imports of refined petroleum products.

According to OPEC, Africa will need over US$40bn in refining investments by 2030 to meet its mid-decade objectives, and beyond that, an additional US$60+ billion for refinery construction, modernisation and secondary processing capacity upgrades. This opens a US$100 billion investment opportunity for project developers, institutional investors, sovereign wealth funds and energy-focused private equity.

Africa’s rising domestic consumption of crude – forecast to reach 4.5 million bpd by 2050 from just 1.8 million bpd in 2024 – further underlines the need for investing in downstream infrastructure.
If the continent seizes this momentum, it can move beyond being a raw crude exporter to becoming a competitive, resilient and integrated energy producer.

The 2025 edition of African Energy Week (AEW): Invest in African Energies in Cape Town will provide a platform for governments, operators and financiers to align on next-phase refinery projects, policy incentives and deal pipelines, as countries seek to reduce costly imports and capture more value from domestic crude,

The refinery will have a capacity of 240,000bopd.

Mozambique’s state-owned oil company, Petromoc, has entered a strategic deal with a Nigerian energy firm called Aiteo to develop an oil refinery with a capacity to reach 240,000 barrels-per-day 

The agreement is a two-way blessing as it not only attracts foreign investments for Mozambique in strategic sectors, but also pushes Aiteo to a further influential position as a local company beyond its Nigerian base.

Signed during a formal ceremony chaired by the Mozambican President Daniel Chapo, the agreement will advance energy independence for the country. It will boost fuel supply security, facilitating the construction of one of the largest refineries in southern Africa, and the Southern African Development Community (SADC). 

The engineering procurement and construction activities for the refinery will be covered by an American firm called Deerfield Energy Services LLC. The refinery will be developed in a phased manner with an initial aim to install an 80,000 bpd processing unit within a two-year time frame, and gradually scaled up to the maximum capacity.

While the project promises several benefits, the financial, environmental compliance and execution timelines-based risks involved needs consideration. When ready for operation, the plant will be able to produce petrol, diesel, jet fuel and naptha for domestic as well as regional use. 

Calling the project a 'milestone' for its employment generation possibilities, Ransome Owan, Aiteo's group managing director for infrastructure, said, “It will reduce import reliance, create jobs, and lay the foundation for Mozambique to become a leading hub in the region’s downstream energy sector.”

Mozambique is committed to an extensive industrial strategy to advance energy access, economic diversification, and infrastructure development. The refinery falls in line with this strategy as it will ensure greater access to cleaner fuels and advance clean cooking initiatives with the easy availability of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) distribution.

The new 750-meter quay will double the terminal’s capacity. (Image source: Adobe Stock)

As part of production optimisation strategy, the Republic of Congo is advancing investments on infrastructure development

With aims to expand the container terminal at the Port of Pointe Noire, a €230mn in financing has been generated to onboard freight forwarding service Africa Global Logistics (AGL) for the project.

The new 750-meter quay – scheduled for completion by 2027 – will double the terminal’s capacity to 2.3 million containers annually and support the country’s growing oil and LNG exports.
The Pointe Noire project is being executed by AGL’s subsidiary Congo Terminal in collaboration with engineering firm China Road and Bridge Corporation. Backed by both international and Congolese banks, the €400mn platform will include 26 hectares of quayside, a dredged 17-meter-deep basin, and the installation of 16 gantries. It forms a key part of Congo’s strategy to boost hydrocarbon production to 500,000 barrels of oil per day and LNG output to 3 million tons per annum within five years.

In Angola, AGL also launched operations at its Lobito Terminal in March last year. The terminal – Angola’s second-largest port hub – handles over one million tons of bulk cargo and more than 100,000 20-ft equivalent unit containers annually, with 730 employees operating deepwater berths and modern equipment. The project comes at a pivotal time for Angola, which is preparing to bring several major energy developments online between 2025 and 2028. These include the Cabinda Oil Refinery in 2025, the Agogo Integrated West Hub development in late-2025, the Quiluma and Maboqueiro gas fields in 2026 and the Kaminho Deepwater Development in 2028.

Meanwhile, in Ivory Coast, AGL is playing a vital role in Phase 2 of the Baleine offshore development - West Africa’s first net-zero emissions project. In partnership with engineering firm Saipem, AGL began manufacturing critical subsea structures for the Baleine field in April 2024 at its Carena shipyard in Abidjan. The works include anchoring systems and underwater fixtures totaling over 200 tons, to be deployed in ultra-deep waters. AGL has mobilized 100 skilled local workers – including certified welders, painters and crane operators – reinforcing its commitment to local content, capacity building and sustainable energy infrastructure in Ivory Coast’s rapidly growing oil and gas sector.

AGL’s recent activities in Africa align with its broader vision to support the continent’s energy infrastructure. In addition to the Republic of Congo, Angola and Ivory Coast, the company is currently modernising the Walvis Bay terminal in Namibia while playing a key role in major energy logistics across Mauritania, Senegal and Mozambique.