State oil company Sonangol has not received any formal request from Botswana to acquire a stake in Angola’s planned Lobito refinery, a senior executive said, expressing surprise at media reports suggesting otherwise.
Reports in recent weeks had indicated that Botswana was considering taking up to a 30 percent share in the US$6.6 billion refinery project, a key pillar of Angola’s strategy to reduce its dependence on imported fuel.
But Joaquim Kiteculo, head of Sonangol’s refining division, said the company had not been approached officially by Gaborone.
“It was our first time to hear that Botswana is interested,” Kiteculo told Reuters on the sidelines of an energy conference in Cape Town.
The proposed Lobito refinery, with a planned capacity of 200,000 barrels per day, has faced years of delays, largely due to financing challenges.
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Angola has been seeking partners to help fund the project, which is expected to be the country’s largest refinery and a major step toward improving domestic fuel supply and cutting costly imports.
Media reports citing Botswana’s energy minister, Bogolo Joy Kenewendo, had suggested that the government was weighing options to secure a stake after being offered participation.
Botswana’s energy ministry did not respond to requests for comment.
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Kiteculo said that while Angola remains open to new investors, it intends to retain a majority stake in any partnership structure.
“Angola will keep at least 51 percent,” he said, underlining the government’s desire to maintain control over strategic energy infrastructure.
He added that Zambia — not Botswana — had been involved in discussions around the refinery project from the outset, with the two countries having signed a memorandum of understanding on potential participation.
For Botswana, a landlocked country, interest in refining capacity aligns with broader efforts to strengthen fuel security, expand storage capacity and diversify supply sources.
The country has also been exploring a separate refinery project in partnership with Namibia.
Financing gap persists
Despite its strategic importance, the Lobito refinery continues to face a substantial funding shortfall, slowing progress on construction.
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Angola is currently seeking to close a financing gap estimated at around US$4.8 billion.
A senior delegation, including officials from Sonangol and Angola’s energy ministry, is in China to secure backing for the project.
Kiteculo said discussions with potential financiers were ongoing, with an initial tranche of US$2.2 billion expected in the first phase, followed by an additional US$2.6 billion.
“I would say, in the first stage, it is going to be US$2.2 billion and later, an additional US$2.6, but the situation currently remains the same as before,” he said.
So far, Sonangol has invested approximately US$1.4 billion of its own funds into early-stage infrastructure, including roads and water systems needed for the refinery.
Kiteculo said the company would continue to fund the project even in the absence of external partners, underscoring Angola’s commitment to completing the refinery.
Strategic importance
The Lobito refinery is central to Angola’s broader plan to overhaul its downstream oil sector.
Despite being one of Africa’s top crude producers, Angola imports a large share of its refined petroleum products due to limited domestic refining capacity.
Once completed, the refinery is expected to significantly reduce import dependence, improve fuel availability and potentially position Angola as a regional supplier of refined products.
The project also reflects a wider push across Africa to invest in refining infrastructure as countries seek to capture more value from their natural resources and shield their economies from global supply disruptions.
For now, however, uncertainty over financing and partnership arrangements continues to cloud the timeline for one of the continent’s most ambitious energy projects.
