Lobito

Lobito Refinery Project Profile

The Lobito Refinery is located in the city of Lobito, Benguela Province, Angola. The refinery site is approximately 3,800 hectares and is situated about 8 km northwest of Lobito and 35 km northwest of the city of Benguela.
Extensive site preparation has been undertaken, including total demining of the land, deep demining of the area for the factory and reservoirs, land clearing, fencing the entire area, construction of access roads, and a road for super heavy loads. Additional works include the construction of a maritime terminal, preparation and leveling of terraces, and the construction of roads and bridges to facilitate access.

The refinery is designed to process between 100,000 to 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day (bopd), significantly increasing Angola's domestic refining capacity.
Once operational, the refinery will produce refined fuels such as gasoline, diesel, Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), and Jet Fuel A1, enabling Angola to become self-sufficient in these products and potentially export to neighboring countries.

The refinery will be owned and operated under a Build, Own, Operate (BOO) model, with Sonangol holding 30% of the shares. The remaining 70% is open to private ownership, with the Zambian government holding a 15% stake due to a planned oil and gas pipeline connecting Zambia to the refinery.

Sonangol has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with China National Chemical Engineering Co. Ltd. (CNCEC) for the financing and construction of the refinery. This MoU, signed in June 2023, may lead to a formal contract for CNCEC to construct the refinery.
KBR Inc. has been contracted to provide project management services for the design and construction of the refinery, including engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) phase execution. KBR completed the front-end engineering and design (FEED) study for the project in early 2023.

The project was initially suspended in 2016 but was restarted in 2017 following the election of President Lourenço. Significant preparatory works, including FEED studies and site preparations, have been ongoing since then.
Physical execution works on the refinery had reached 2% as of February 2024. The construction phase is expected to take 40 months from its start, with the refinery anticipated to come online as early as 2026.

The FEED study includes designs that meet stringent industrial emission standards for 2030 African and European product specifications. KBR’s design for the refinery’s cooling system aims to reduce water consumption and wastewater treatment requirements by 30%, aligning with global energy transition goals.
The project includes environmental impact studies, topographic studies, geotechnical studies, and bathymetric studies of the Lobito bay and the Biopio dam basin to ensure sustainable development.

The Lobito Refinery is part of Angola’s national plan to increase domestic crude processing capacity, reduce dependence on refined product imports, encourage foreign investment, and create employment opportunities for Angolans.
The project is expected to increase Angola’s capacity to produce domestic fuels by 200%, contributing significantly to the country’s energy self-sufficiency and its role as a regional energy hub.

The refinery is part of a broader strategy that includes the development of other refineries in Soyo and Cabinda. The Soyo refinery will have a capacity of up to 100,000 bopd, and the Cabinda refinery will produce 60,000 bopd.
There are plans for integrating petrochemicals into the project, and Sonangol is consolidating technical studies for this integration.

The Lobito Refinery is connected to the broader Lobito Corridor development, which includes the rehabilitation of the railway line and port infrastructure. This corridor spans across Southern and Central Africa, enhancing regional trade and economic integration.