Nigeria’s Dangote confirms $327mn purchase of 24.76% stake in Kenya Pipeline Company

Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote has confirmed that his group acquired a 24.76% stake in Kenya Pipeline Company (NSE: KPC) in a transaction valued at KES42.5bn ($327mn), identifying the buyer behind one of the largest block trades on the Nairobi Securities Exchange this year.

Dangote disclosed the acquisition at the Financial Times Africa Summit in London on October 21, Bloomberg reported.

The disclosure follows the transfer of 4.5bn KPC shares reported by the Nairobi bourse on October 19, equivalent to 24.76% of the company’s issued share capital, at prices of between KES9.02 and KES9.36 per share. The stake sits just below the 25% threshold at which Kenya’s capital markets rules require a mandatory takeover process overseen by the Capital Markets Authority.

The shares were sold by state-linked institutions that had bought into KPC during its initial public offering (IPO), Business Daily reported on October 21.

The transaction makes Dangote’s group one of KPC’s largest shareholders, alongside the Kenyan government, which retained a 35% stake following the company’s privatisation earlier this year, and the Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC), which bought a 20.15% stake for $255.4mn in the IPO.

Uganda, which imports nearly all its refined fuel through KPC’s network, secured two board seats and veto rights over matters including pipeline tariffs and dividend policy as a condition of its investment. The specific Dangote investment vehicle holding the shares has not been disclosed.

See IntelliNews: Uganda eyes stake in Kenya Pipeline financed by part of $2bn Vitol-backed loan.

The buyer’s identity had remained unknown when the block trade was first reported. The shares were transferred through the Nairobi bourse about seven months after KPC listed on March 9, following an IPO that raised approximately KES106bn through the sale of a 65% government stake.

See IntelliNews: Unidentified investors trade $327mn Kenya Pipeline stake in single block deal.

State-backed institutions had purchased substantial holdings during the IPO after weak demand from private investors raised concerns about the offer’s success. The National Social Security Fund, Public Servants Pension Scheme, County Workers Pension Fund and Unclaimed Financial Assets Authority were among the major domestic buyers.

When the National Assembly approved KPC’s privatisation in October 2025, lawmakers attached conditions intended to prevent the company from being dominated by a small group of wealthy investors, The Standard reported at the time.

The block sale has drawn criticism from opposition politicians, including People’s Party of Kenya leader Ndindi Nyoro, who has linked it to the Lamu refinery project; Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi has previously rejected claims that President William Ruto holds shares in the refinery, People Daily reported.

The October transaction represents a transfer of existing shares between investors rather than a new capital injection into KPC or an additional sale of the government’s retained shareholding.

KPC operates Kenya’s principal refined petroleum pipeline and storage network, including about 1,342km of pipeline, transporting fuel from the port of Mombasa to Nairobi and inland distribution centres including Nakuru, Eldoret and Kisumu. Its infrastructure also supports petroleum supplies to neighbouring East African markets.

Dangote’s investment comes weeks after he broke ground on a proposed $16bn oil refinery at Lamu on September 30. The planned facility would have a processing capacity of 700,000 barrels per day (bpd), with completion targeted for 2030. Kenyan President William Ruto, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed attended the ceremony.

The project faces a court challenge from local residents over land rights. A court allowed the groundbreaking to proceed while the case continues.

See IntelliNews: Nigerian billionaire Dangote favours Kenya over Tanzania for 650,000-bpd East Africa oil refinery.

The refinery is intended to supply Kenya and neighbouring countries with petroleum products, potentially creating commercial links with the distribution infrastructure operated by KPC. No specific supply or transportation agreement between the proposed refinery and KPC has been disclosed.

Dangote has offered East African governments a combined 30% stake in the proposed refinery, whose development remains subject to project execution and financing requirements. The KPC purchase also coincides with the initial public offering of Dangote’s Nigerian refinery, which was due to close on October 13 but was extended until October 27.

See IntelliNews: Nigeria’s Dangote says refinery IPO subscriptions span 51 African countries.

KPC reported a 13% increase in net profit to KES11.58bn for the financial year ended June 2026, and its board recommended a dividend of KES5.81bn, subject to shareholder approval.

The acquisition gives Dangote’s group a substantial equity position in an established regional petroleum logistics business as it pursues a separate investment in refining capacity in Kenya.