Uganda’s Ambitious Oil Pipeline Project Races Toward 2026 Launch
Uganda’s dream of becoming an oil exporter by the second half of 2026 is accelerating as the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) project enters its final 12-month construction phase.
Engineers working on the massive 1,443-kilometer pipeline, designed to transport crude from Uganda’s Albertine Graben to Tanzania’s Tanga port, anticipate that all pipeline and support infrastructure will be complete by mid-2026. The project aims to achieve first oil sales exactly two decades after Uganda discovered 6.5 billion barrels of commercially viable reserves.
Despite facing significant setbacks including the withdrawal of initial financiers and insurance companies, the project has maintained momentum. EACOP plans to complete a crucial 75-kilometer stretch of 24-inch pipes connecting the Waiga River near Lake Albert to the Kabalega Industrial Park in Hoima by year-end.
Hadi Watfa, EACOP’s Lot-1 project manager, confirmed that overall concrete and infrastructure progress at Pump Station 1 stands at 67%, with civil works nearing completion. The Chinese-managed Kingfisher oilfield is notably ahead of schedule, with its 50-kilometer feeder pipeline to the station already 95% complete.
The project received a significant boost with a $1 billion syndicated loan from local and regional lenders, including Stanbic Bank and KCB Bank, following delays caused by activism that had led to TotalEnergies and partners providing additional equity financing.
Source: pipeline-journal.net
