Media Feed

Uganda sees Hoima refinery ready ‘in late 2023’

Consortium comprising Saipem, Baker Hughes and others to formally launch FEED on facility soon

Uganda’s government is hoping that a proposed new refinery to be built in tandem with the Total and CNOOC Ltd-operated Kingfisher and Tilenga oilfield development in the Lake Albert area will be up and running in 2023.

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Oranto Petroleum increases its support to the education of Uganda, South Sudan’s communities

As part of its commitment to the socio-economic development of South Sudan, Oranto Petroleum will be financing an educational programme in conjunction with the Ministry of Petroleum, to provide training to 25 teachers in the most underprivileged parts of the country.

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Government asked to involve youth in oil and gas sector issues

Players in Uganda’s emerging oil and gas sector should pursue the goal of extraction and production by involving young people in aspects like information sharing to prevent likely misconceptions that could trigger conflicts in future.

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The Daily Monitor Special report on the EACOP highlighting the challenges faced in land acquisition, environmental concerns and the opportunities under the title “Pipeline Dreams”

  • Pipeline dreams: Will locals cash in on the oil bonanza?

In Summary

  • Part IV. Since the commercial oil volumes were announced in 2006, participation of Ugandans in the nascent sector has been a sticking issue. Frederic Musisi writes.
  • Then pre-qualification adverts started running in newspapers calling for hotels which can provide decent accommodation, etcetera; the rest is now history, Ms Sarah Kiyimba, the hotel proprietor, says.

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Can Uganda -Tanzania pipeline project pass environment test?

In Summary

Part III. The proposed Uganda-Tanzania crude oil pipeline will be one of the world’s longest heated pipelines. It is a feasible venture given prospects of more hydrocarbon in the region. However, for the two governments, the tests are quite immense, including balancing several interests as Frederic Musisi writes.

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Land acquisition hurdles await oil pipeline project

In Summary

  • Part II. In many countries, it is standard practice that if your land is impacted by a government project, you have to be paid first or later.
  • Uganda’s land acquisition law details steps for acquiring private land but the process has lately become a nightmare, and is one of the hurdles awaiting the East African Crude Oil Pipeline.
  • Only Tanzania offers some ease, which was a basis for choosing the Hoima-Tanga route but even then, a full plate awaits. Frederic Musisi and Dominic Bukenya travelled along the pipeline corridor to explore the issue.

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Pipeline dreams: Inside the Uganda – Tanzania oil pipeline talks

In Summary

  • Timeline: The governments of Uganda and Tanzania, and the Joint Venture (JV) partners, Tullow Oil, Total E&P and Cnooc say they are looking at not later than August as deadline for conclusion of all agreements and announcing Final Investment Decision (FID) for the proposed East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP).
  • Officials from both sides say the timeline is achievable and there is commitment but as Frederic Musisi writes in this four-part series, there is more than meets the eye.

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Local firms at losing end as Uganda sets the stage for oil production

As Uganda’s oil and gas industry warms up for the final investment decision (FID) expected by July, weak operational capacity and unfair business practices faced by local firms have drawn attention to industry challenges while efforts to boost the financial capacity of domestic companies seem to be paying off.

In Summary

  • Service providers lack the capacity to execute large procurement contracts.
  • Sources says that most business opportunities for service providers in the local oil and gas industry lie between the oil exploration tier and commercial production facilities.
  • Unfair business practices reportedly adopted by major oil and gas exploration companies operating in the country also threaten local firms’ participation in the lucrative business.

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Total’s Uganda FID seen in June

French giant, CNOOC Ltd and Tullow getting closer to Lake Albert project sanction

Total and its partners in the Lake Albert oilfield development in Uganda will take a final investment decision on the first phase in June, according to the head of the country’s regulator.

“We have talked to the companies and we know what they are thinking,” Ernest Rubondo, executive director of the Petroleum Authority of Uganda, told Upstream on the sidelines of the CERAWeek by IHS Markit conference in Houston this week.

“(Project sanction) should have been last year but then there were things that made it outstanding. We are talking with them on a very regular basis.”

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Government seeks Shs847b for stake in oil pipeline

Kampala. Government through the Uganda National Oil Company (Unoc) will require between Shs578b and Shs847b to finance its equity stake in the proposed East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP).

The exact financing structure is still being worked out but sources familiar with the matter told Daily Monitor that if the ongoing negotiations agree to-debt-to equity ratios of 60:40, Unoc will have to mobilise $230m (Shs847b) as its take; if the debt to equity ratios is 70:30, then Uganda’s financing will be in the ranges of $157m (about Shs578b).

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District protests Kampala name for Mpigi oil terminal

Mpigi. Mpigi District chairperson Peter Claver Mutuluza has questioned the rationale of naming a petroleum storage facility after Kampala yet the site is in Mpigi.
“We don’t see any reason why they (government) suggested that a petroleum storage facility, which is deep in a village in Mpigi, be christened Kampala.

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In Summary

  • Project’s name. Government technocrats named the petroleum storage facility as Kampala Storage Terminal but the local leaders insist the word Mpigi should be reflected in the name.

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Longest oil pipeline to benefit East African region

Ugandan entrepreneurs have been asked to make the most of the oil pipe line.

The chairman Uganda Chamber of Mines and Petroleum Dr Elly Karuhanga says pipe line that will stretch from Kabale district in Uganda to Tanga in Tanzania will be of great economic benefit to the region.

Addressing participants at the Stanbic Enterprise conference about unlocking the oil and gas opportunities for local enterprises Karuhanga urged local service provides to strategically station their businesses along the pipeline and reap from the project.

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Uganda oil pipeline to wait for a while

Uganda, Tanzania and their partners in the East African Crude Oil Pipeline are yet to agree on provisions of the host government agreement, shareholder agreements and transportation tariffs.

This has given room for speculation that the parties are under pressure to reach a final investment decision (FID).

In Summary

  • There is speculation that the parties are under pressure to reach a final investment decision (FID).
  • The president and Total boss are said to have settled on June for the FID, but several issues remain unresolved.
  • Once all agreements are reached, the oil companies will embark on building a coating plant in Tanzania to protect the pipeline from corrosion.

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700 SMEs Benefit From Stanbic Bank Conference On Oil And Gas

As Uganda prepares for the development stage in the Oil and Gas sector, Stanbic Bank has hosted the second edition of the Enterprise Conference which focused on providing a platform for Small and Medium Enterprises (SME’s) to exchange ideas on how SMEs can tap into Uganda’s nascent Oil and Gas.

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Stanbic’s conference awakens entrepreneurs

Kampala, Uganda | JULIUS BUSINGE | There is need for partnerships, connections, networking, trust, perseverance, access to credit, and promising what you can deliver.

These were the messages that most speakers that took part in Stanbic Bank’s second edition of the annual enterprise conference held at Hotel Africana on March 12 told heads of businesses in the gas and oil industry.

Held under the theme ‘unlocking the oil and gas opportunities for local enterprises,’ the conference attracted slightly over 500 high minded entrepreneurs to share experiences on how to sustainably grow their businesses

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Uganda: Government, Chinese Firm Sign Shs500b Oil Roads Deal

Kampala — Government yesterday signed a multi-billion deal with the China Railway Seventh Group to design and construct Masindi-Biso, Kabaale-Kizirafumbi and Hohwa-Nyairongo-Kyarushesha-Butole road.

The 97km road is part of the 700km critical oil roads that are supposed to be tarmacked ahead of onset of oil production in 2021.

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Total asks govt to intervene in Tilenga project name wrangle

NWOYA. Total E&P has written to the Ministry of Energy and National Environmental Management Authority (Nema), seeking intervention in a wrangle where two local communities are protesting against the current project name – Tilenga.
The Tilenga project lies at the northern end of Lake Albert in Nwoya District and is part of Exploration Area 2 in Buliisa District. It comprises of eight oil fields with about 419 oil wells.
However, locals, particularly the Bagungu and Acholi are facing off over the Tilenga name and want it dropped.

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$30bn investment push into Africa’s downstream oil industry sparks optimism

Africa’s demand for energy, which is far higher than that of other regions in the world, is expected to be very positive for the African downstream oil industry, which has seen a $30-billion investment push in logistics, distribution, storage terminals, import facilities and retail marketing in recent years.

These developments were mentioned during the fourteenth annual conference of the African Refiners and Distributors Association (ARA) held in Cape Town this week.

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Uganda : China to facilitate oil transport with a $134 mln road

(Ecofin Agency) – China will build a 97-km road in Uganda, the Daily Monitor indicated this week.

According to the website, the new $134 million infrastructure includes three road axes namely Masindi-Biso, Kabaale-Kizirafumbi and Hohwa-Nyairongo-Kyarushesha-Butole road. It should be realized by the China Railway Seventh Group and completed within three years.

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In the New vision: We have oil, I saw it with my naked eyes!

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Uganda and Tanzania to sign USD 3.5bn Pipeline deal

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