The government-to-government agreement opens Kenya’s port and pipeline infrastructure to Rwanda’s bulk petroleum imports — and could shift the region’s fuel transit map.
Rwanda and Kenya on Monday signed three agreements that will allow Rwanda to import bulk refined petroleum products through Kenya’s Northern Corridor, in a government-to-government deal that both countries say will deepen regional energy security and economic integration.
The signing took place at KASNEB Tower in Nairobi and was witnessed by Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Energy and Petroleum, Opiyo Wandayi, and Rwanda’s Minister of Trade and Industry, Antoine-Marie Kajangwe. The agreements cover a Memorandum of Understanding, a Tripartite Agreement, and a Transport and Storage Agreement between the Rwanda National Energy Company (RNEC) and the Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC).
“Kenya will provide a transit environment to guarantee security of supply of bulk refined petroleum products to Rwanda for the long haul.” — CS Opiyo Wandayi
Under the deal, Rwanda’s petroleum imports through the Northern Corridor are projected to rise more than tenfold — from roughly 42,000 cubic metres in 2025 to over 500,000 cubic metres annually. KPC will provide transportation and storage services using its 1,342-kilometre pipeline network, storage facilities, and the Kisumu Oil Jetty on Lake Victoria.
The first shipment, designated RNEC 001/2026, is expected to arrive at the Port of Mombasa between September 4 and 6, 2026.
The deal is also a strategic reversal. Rwanda currently routes about 90 per cent of its fuel imports through Tanzania’s Central Corridor, with Kenya supplying less than 10 per cent of the country’s petroleum demand. Monday’s agreement is designed to shift that balance, repositioning Kenya as Rwanda’s primary fuel transit route.
To make the arrangement competitive, KPC extended the petroleum storage period for Rwanda-bound petrol and diesel from 35 days to 90 days for the first two years. Rwanda is also a shareholder in KPC, having invested in the company’s Initial Public Offering.
The negotiations began in Kigali in November 2024 and received final approval from Kenya’s Cabinet on June 16, 2026. RNEC has since been registered in Kenya and licensed by the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) to import, export, and wholesale petroleum products.
Both governments said the framework could eventually extend fuel distribution to other landlocked countries in the region, with the Eldoret–Kampala pipeline corridor identified as a potential future route to Kigali.
