Recent protests in Nigeria highlight the economic and social importance of affordable fuels
Letter on Africa: New African refineries could help break old dependencies
A profound shift is occurring in the global refining sector, one which might help redefine Africa’s place in worldwide trade networks
This year has seen the ramp-up of the massive Dangote refinery in Nigeria, although not without teething problems with feedstock supply. In Ghana, China’s Sentuo Group recently secured an operational licence for its 40,000b/d Tema refinery development and is advancing plans for a second phase to raise capacity to 100,000b/d. Angola’s 60,000b/d Cabinda refinery is on pace to start production later this year, ahead of a number of other refining projects in the country. Elsewhere in the continent, Uganda is pushing hard for its own refinery to complement the Kingfisher and Tilenga oilfield developments and the associated East African Crude Oil Pipeline. Even unstable South Sudan has made noises
Also in this section
13 March 2026
Brussels is again weighing a cap on gas prices amid the Hormuz crisis, but the measure could backfire by deterring the LNG cargoes Europe urgently needs
12 March 2026
Emergency oil stocks provide a last line of defence to oil market shocks, so the IEA’s unprecedented 400m bl release represents something of a double-edged sword
12 March 2026
LPG could rapidly expand access to clean cooking across Africa and prevent hundreds of thousands of deaths from indoor air pollution each year, but infrastructure shortages and regulatory barriers are slowing investment and market growth
11 March 2026
Missiles over Dubai and disruption in Hormuz are testing the emirate’s reputation—and shaking the energy hub at the centre of the Gulf economy
