In a landmark agreement, China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) has signed an MoU with the Gabonese government to build a new refinery in Port-Gentil aimed at reducing Gabon’s fuel import dependence. The project expects to generate 20,000+ jobs during its construction phase.

Gabon’s current refinery, SOGARA, has long struggled with capacity constraints and operational issues, processing only a fraction of the nation’s petroleum demand. CRBC’s venture signals confident foreign investment in African downstream assets — combining refining with supportive infrastructure (roads, terminals) in an integrated industrial push.

For global refining watchers, this marks another instance of upstream nations investing in vertical integration — ensuring not only crude exports but also domestic processing capabilities. If executed well, the Gabon refinery could improve fuel security, reduce import margins, and serve as a regional export hub in West Africa.