Posted on :Friday , 21st January 2022

The Chinese-built oil terminal at Kenya's Mombasa port is expected to be operational in July this year, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta said on 6th January 2022.

The construction of the 770-meter long offshore jetty, currently at 96% completion, was wholly funded by the Kenya Ports Authority and implemented by China Communications Construction Co., the presidential office said in a statement.

The new jetty, the largest of its kind in Africa, was built at a cost of 40 billion Kenyan shillings (USD 350.5 million), the statement said.

The jetty will be capable of loading and off-loading very large sea tankers of up to 200,000 deadweight metric tons, carrying all categories of petroleum products including crude oil, white oils and liquefied petroleum gas.

President Kenyatta and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi inspected the construction of the jetty on 6th January 2022.

The jetty will enhance energy supply and ensure price stability of petroleum products in Kenya and the region by replacing the 50 year old onshore Kipevu Oil Terminal, President Kenyatta said.

Kenya and its neighboring countries depend heavily on imports of petroleum products to meet their energy demand.

However, the East African economy hopes to reduce its reliance on energy imports and even look to export oil with the Turkana project in the northwest of the country, where oil was first discovered by Tullow Oil PLC in 2012.