Nigerian businessman Aliko Dangote on Wednesday 4 November broke ground on a $2.5bn fuel storage hub and a pipeline of about 1,700km outside Walvis Bay, Namibia, a project meant to supply landlocked southern African countries.
What is being built
The storage facility is planned to hold about 600 million litres, made up of 360 million litres of diesel and 240 million litres of petrol. The storage hub is reported to be due within 18 months at most. No fixed timetable or route has been given for the pipeline.
The pipeline is intended to carry fuel inland towards Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi and parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
What was said
Namibian President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah said: "Today, is the most memorable day of my presidency."
Dangote said: "We want to invest heavily so that landlocked countries can access petroleum products at cheaper prices." He also said: "What we are launching today represents an investment of $2.5 billion, but Namibia deserves much more."
Dangote also raised his Africa investment target to $60bn by 2030, from $50bn, according to reports of the event.
What we do not yet know
- Whether the pipeline will reach South Africa. One account of the event says it will run towards Botswana and South Africa; another lists only Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi and parts of the DRC.
- The pipeline's route, cost split and construction timetable.
- How the project will be financed. We have not seen a company or government statement on it.
