The contractors undertaking the construction of the 1,443-kilometre East African Crude Oil Pipeline -EACOP, designed to transport crude oil from Uganda’s Albertine region to the Chongoleani peninsula near Tanga Port in Tanzania, have laid 1100 kilometres (76.2 per cent) of the pipeline across both Uganda and Tanzania.
The project implementation is a joint venture between China Petroleum Pipeline Engineering Co., Ltd and Worley Limited. The latest information obtained by Uganda Radio Network about the EACOP project indicates that the contractors have successfully laid 1,100 kilometres of the pipeline in both countries.
The pipeline is estimated to cost USD 5 billion. Its starting point is at Nyamasoga village in Kabaale parish, Hoima District, Uganda. It has a 24-inch diameter, will be insulated and electrically heated, with six pump stations, two of them in Uganda. It also has two pressure reduction stations and a marine export terminal in Tanzania.
Hadi Watfa, the Manager of Above Ground Installation who also doubles as the Lot One Manager for Uganda Pump One Station under the EACOP project, told URN that 1,100 kilometres of the pipeline have already been covered.
Wafta says in Uganda, they have so far covered 380 kilometres, while on the Tanzania side, they have covered 720 kilometres, marking a significant milestone in the progress of the EACOP project.
He adds that the pipeline Ugandan section requires extensive pipe bending due to the elevated terrain, adding that as of late August, 850 of the estimated 3,000 to 3,500 bends for this section had been completed, while 580 pipe bends had been completed in the Tanzanian section as of late August this year.
He says as of early September, 762 kilometres of pipe have been welded, with over 325 kilometres coated and more than 104 kilometres laid and completely buried in the ground, emphasizing that the project is on track to begin transporting crude oil in 2026.
He notes that there are electrical and fibre-optic cables running along the entire EACOP stretch of the oil pipeline that will deliver heat and enable real-time satellite monitoring to prevent potential leaks.
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Watfa adds that they have also made significant progress in the construction of the Pump Station 1 (PS1), with 70 per cent of the work executed.
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Located at the Kabalega Industrial Park in Kabaale village in Hoima district, the pump station 1 (PS1) is a critical facility designed to receive crude oil from the Kingfisher and Tilenga upstream projects in Kikuube and Buliisa districts, respectively and push it into the 1,443 km pipeline from Hoima in an efficient and continuous flow for further transportation to the Changoleani Peninsula at the port of Tanga in Tanzania.
Watfa noted that the pump station will be mechanically complete by June 2026, with pre-commissioning work beginning in February 2026, as full inauguration is expected to take place in June.
According to Watfa, they are on schedule to bury the entire feeder pipeline before the end of this year.
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The pipeline route will traverse Uganda through Hoima, Kikuube, Kakumiro, Kyankwanzi, Mubende, Gomba, Sembabule, Lwengo, Kyotera, and Rakai, before crossing into Tanzania between Masaka and Bukoba, continuing through Kahama, Singida, Kondoa, and ending in Tanga.
The project is jointly owned by TotalEnergies E&P Uganda (62 per cent), CNOOC Uganda (8 per cent), Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (15 per cent), and Uganda National Oil Company.
However, the EACOP project has faced significant opposition from both local and international environmental and human rights activists. In 2022, the European Parliament called for a one-year delay of the project, citing concerns over human rights violations and environmental damage.
The Parliament’s resolution highlighted alleged abuses, including the wrongful imprisonment of human rights defenders, the arbitrary suspension of NGOs, and forced evictions of landowners without proper compensation.
The EU Parliament also raised concerns about the potential displacement of over 100,000 people due to the project.
Further, it expressed alarm over the environmental impact, particularly on protected areas like the shores of Lake Albert and Murchison Falls National Park, where TotalEnergies plans to dig 132 wells.
The resolution called for a halt to extractive activities in these sensitive ecosystems.