(5 minutes read)
· The leaders of Uganda and Tanzania have signed an agreement for the construction of the world’s longest heated oil pipeline
· The US$3.5bn heated pipeline project will connect Uganda’s oil fields to Tanzania’s port of Tanga. The signing ceremony was attended by the presidents of both countries
The leaders of Uganda and Tanzania have signed an agreement for the construction of the world’s longest heated oil pipeline. The US$3.5bn heated pipeline project will connect Uganda’s oil fields to Tanzania’s port of Tanga. The signing ceremony was attended by the presidents of both countries.
Oil production has been delayed partly by a lack of infrastructure including an export pipeline. Oil reserves were found in Uganda in 2006. The work towards the pipeline is yet to start. The date has to be announced for the launch of the project billed as East Africa’s first major oil pipeline. But there are warnings from the Green groups that the project could come at a huge cost to some Ugandan communities.
French oil giant Total is leading the plans along with China’s CNOOC, and the governments of Uganda and Tanzania. Total, the majority shareholder in Uganda’s oil fields, said it had reached an agreement on the pipeline with Uganda’s government. About 80% of the pipeline will run through Tanzania and the project is expected to create more than 18,000 jobs for Tanzanians.
