Dangote Cement has ruled out establishing a new manufacturing plant in Kenya in the medium term, citing challenges in securing limestone reserves suitable for a large-scale cement operation.
Dangote Cement CEO Arvind Pathak made the disclosure during the company’s Capital Markets Day in London on September 21, 2026, as the Nigerian conglomerate outlined plans to expand its cement production capacity across Africa.
Pathak said Kenya is currently not included in Dangote Cement’s business plan targeting 80 million tonnes of annual production capacity, which includes an additional 25 million tonnes from planned expansion.
“Right now in our business plan, which we have presented for 80 million tonnes, Kenya is not figuring in that. So in this period, that is the medium term, we do not envisage to have a plant in Kenya,” Pathak said, according to Kenyans.co.ke.
The company said it has identified large, high-quality limestone resources in several countries where it already operates but has not found a comparable opportunity in Kenya. Limestone is a key raw material in cement manufacturing, with Dangote noting that the location and quality of limestone deposits are important considerations when developing a large cement plant.
Dangote, however, has not completely closed the door on Kenya. Pathak said the company could reconsider establishing a manufacturing operation if it identifies limestone reserves that meet its requirements in terms of size, quality and proximity to the market.
For now, the company’s East African cement expansion will focus on markets where it already has production infrastructure. In Ethiopia, Dangote’s West Shewa plant in Mugher has an installed capacity of 2.5 million tonnes per year and is being expanded to increase output. In Tanzania, the company is undertaking a low-cost optimisation programme at its Mtwara plant, which currently produces about three million tonnes annually and operates at roughly 85 to 90 per cent capacity. The optimisation programme is expected to raise production capacity by 16 per cent.
Beyond East Africa, Dangote said its next phase of growth will largely involve upgrading existing plants while exploring new markets, including Zimbabwe and Botswana.
The decision comes as Dangote continues to pursue a major investment in Kenya’s energy sector. The company is preparing for the September 30 groundbreaking of its proposed KSh2.59 trillion ($20 billion) Lamu oil refinery and petrochemical complex, which is expected to have a processing capacity of 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day.
For Kenya’s cement industry, Dangote’s decision means the company will not add a new local manufacturing facility to its portfolio in the medium term. Its entry into the Kenyan cement manufacturing market will therefore depend largely on whether commercially viable limestone resources meeting its requirements can be identified in future.
The development also highlights the importance of raw-material availability and logistics in attracting large-scale manufacturing investments, particularly in industries such as cement where proximity to key inputs can significantly influence production costs and plant viability.
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