Ethiopia’s fast-growing economy has Asian investors lining up to build a new $4 billion oil refinery, even as a Blackstone Group LP-backed fuel pipeline project is shelved. Fairfax Africa has plans to eventually double the plant’s capacity amid industrial expansion and increased demand for motor vehicles. The work on that $1.6 billion Blackstone-backed fuel pipeline was put on hold “early last year,” Black Rhino Chief Executive Officer Brian Herlihy said in an emailed response to questions. The proposed Fairfax Africa refinery faces competition. In Ethiopia, the Oromia region’s government has been planning a petroleum company to import oil via Djibouti and process it at a planned refinery linked to the new railway.

Source: Ethiopian News January 29, 2018 23:16 UTC