A Kenyan court has ordered a halt to activities at the site of the proposed Dangote refinery in Lamu County pending further hearing of a case brought by farmers and residents of Chandavai.
Justice Jane Onyango of the Malindi Environment and Land Court ordered parties to maintain the status quo after the residents challenged the project over alleged forced eviction and destruction of property.
The order, issued on September 25 and made public on Monday, requires the prevailing situation to be maintained until October 14, when the court is expected to give further directions on the case, Bloomberg reported.
The petitioners, through their lawyer, George Wakahiu, alleged that the project would result in the forced eviction of residents from their land and the destruction of their properties without a resettlement plan.
They also claimed that the proposed development had not complied with Kenya's environmental regulations, which require a mandatory environmental impact assessment before the implementation of major projects.
The petitioners further alleged that the project had failed to satisfy constitutional requirements for public participation.
Wakahiu told Bloomberg that the order meant that construction of the project should not commence before the October 14 hearing.
However, Dangote Group said the court had not stopped the planned groundbreaking ceremony for the refinery.
The company, in a statement reported by Reuters on Tuesday, said the ruling could affect activities at the site but did not expressly cancel the ceremony scheduled for September 30.
“The court has not halted the groundbreaking ceremony of the refinery at this stage. However, activities at the site may be affected by the ruling, as both parties are required not to carry out activities until the case is heard on 14th October,” the company said.
The dispute comes days after Kenyan President William Ruto said his administration was expediting administrative processes for the proposed refinery.
Ruto made the disclosure on Friday while touring the Dangote Petroleum Refinery in Lekki, Lagos, ahead of the planned groundbreaking ceremony for the 700,000-barrel-per-day facility in Lamu.
The Kenyan president said the government had secured the land required for the project and was addressing other regulatory and administrative requirements to remove bureaucratic bottlenecks.
He said the refinery would contribute to industrial development in East Africa, create jobs and enhance the technical skills of workers in the region.
Dangote Group President, Aliko Dangote, had said the proposed Kenyan facility would be larger than the existing Dangote refinery in Nigeria.
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