Ethiopia is moving to strengthen its fuel security through a $660 million pipeline project linking the country to Djibouti, with Nigerian industrialist Aliko Dangote also involved in the investment.

Ethiopian Investment Holdings says the 120-kilometer pipeline will connect the Damerjog petroleum hub in Djibouti to Dewele in Ethiopia’s Somali Region.

The project will include storage facilities at both ends and is expected to be completed within two years.

Ethiopian Investment Holdings CEO Brook Taye said the infrastructure will allow fuel shipments arriving in Djibouti to be transferred into storage and then transported by pipeline to Ethiopia.

Taye said the project would reduce delays and demurrage costs, lower fuel transport costs and save foreign exchange.

"When a vessel comes in, it unloads into the depot and immediately the refined products will be transported through the 120-kilometer pipeline," Taye said.

The project is being developed through a partnership between Ethiopian Investment Holdings and the Dangote Group and is expected to strengthen energy security while reducing reliance on tanker trucks.

The first phase will transport refined petroleum products, including jet fuel, diesel and petrol, with the pipeline forming part of a broader effort to improve regional trade and economic integration.