Taifa Gas LPG Plant Nears Completion at Dongo Kundu After Years of Legal Delay

Construction of the Taifa Gas liquefied petroleum gas storage facility at the Dongo Kundu Special Economic Zone in Mombasa County has entered its final phase, with 12 mega spherical storage tanks now largely complete on the 30 acre site.

Storage facilities being constructed on site /Ekesa Austin, X

The project is developed by Taifa Group Limited, Tanzania's largest LPG dealer, founded by Tanzanian billionaire Rostam Aziz. It is designed to store 30,000 metric tonnes of LPG, with capacity that could later expand to 45,000 tonnes, positioning it as one of the largest LPG terminals in the region once operational.

Taifa Group is investing 130 million US dollars (approximately Sh16 billion) in the plant, which sits about four kilometres (2.5 miles) from the Port of Mombasa within the Dongo Kundu Special Economic Zone in Likoni Sub-county.

Taifa Gas plant site /Ekesa Austin, X

President William Ruto launched construction of the facility in February 2023, but the project stalled for extended periods after a section of residents raised environmental concerns, including objections over tree clearing and potential impacts on the marine environment.

The dispute eventually reached the Environment and Land Court in Mombasa, where Justice Stephen Kibunja upheld a preliminary objection and struck out the petition in a ruling on Petition No. E006 of 2025, confirming that the project's environmental impact assessment licence had been lawfully obtained.

Taifa Group General Counsel Timothy Kyepa welcomed the ruling, saying it allows the company to move forward with what he described as safe, sustainable delivery of the project, and that it reinforces confidence in Kenya's environmental governance processes.

Kenya currently has capacity to store about 35,000 metric tonnes of LPG nationally, according to Investment Promotion Principal Secretary Abubakar Hassan, a shortfall officials say has contributed to periodic supply shortages and higher consumer prices for cooking gas.

Once operational, the Taifa facility is expected to nearly double the country's LPG storage capacity, a development officials say should ease supply bottlenecks and support the government's push to raise LPG penetration from 24 percent to 70 percent of households by 2028 under its clean cooking strategy.

Ongoing works /Ekesa Austin, X

Taifa Gas Site Manager Anthony Musyoka said the project is expected to create at least 120 direct jobs in its initial phase, with the company separately projecting up to 90,000 direct and indirect jobs once downstream retail distribution operations begin.

The plant forms part of wider infrastructure development within Dongo Kundu, where Special Economic Zones Authority Chief Executive Officer Kenneth Chelule said more than 100 additional investors have shown interest in setting up operations, supported by ongoing berth construction, road works and electricity connections within the zone.

Taifa Gas already operates across Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Zambia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Africa, and has previously said it intends to establish additional depots in other Kenyan counties, including Nairobi, Kisumu and Kilifi.