Uganda’s oil waits on a 1,447-kilometre route to the sea

For almost two decades after discovering commercial oil in 2006, Uganda could neither refine nor export a single barrel, according to an opinion article published by The Standard Kenya Business (direct). The obstacle was not a shortage of oil. The landlocked country had no domestic refinery and no route to a seaport. Turning its discovery into export income meant building infrastructure across a neighbour’s territory—and finding a way to keep both governments committed.

The East African Crude Oil Pipeline, known as EACOP, is intended to close that gap. The article reports that the project reached 92.7% overall completion by the end of August 2026, describing that progress as aligned with preparations for first oil. Its 1,447-kilometre route connects Kabaale, in Uganda’s Hoima District, with a terminal at Tanzania’s Tanga Port. The account does not provide a specific date for the start of export loading.

Two owners, one export route

Uganda and Tanzania chose shared ownership rather than an arrangement based simply on paying for transit. Uganda’s national oil company, UNOC, and Tanzania’s TPDC each own 15% of EACOP, alongside international partners. The project moved from an agreement between the two governments in 2017 through host-government and commercial agreements to a final investment decision—the formal commitment to proceed—in 2022.

The article’s author argues that equal government stakes helped the project endure years of financing pressure. In that account, a transit-payment arrangement risks leaving one country as a landlord and the other as a tenant. Shared ownership instead gives both a commercial reason to remain involved after committing political support, money and institutional effort. This is the author’s assessment of the partnership, rather than an independently established explanation of the project’s progress.

The author’s central argument: shared ownership gives governments stronger reasons to carry a difficult cross-border project through to completion.

That distinction matters beyond the ownership structure. Uganda could not build across Tanzanian territory on its own authority. The article presents the ability to agree on shared risks—and maintain that agreement when financing and geopolitics become difficult—as a central constraint on bringing new energy supplies to market.

Keeping waxy crude moving

The engineering challenge is also substantial. Oil from Uganda’s Tilenga and Kingfisher fields is waxy, so its temperature must be maintained along the route. Once operating, EACOP is set to become the world’s longest buried, electrically heated crude oil pipeline, according to the article. Operators will monitor flow, pressure and temperature, supported by automated controls, safety equipment and leak-detection systems. Heating and digital monitoring are therefore part of the transport system itself, not optional additions.

More than 12,000 people have been directly employed during construction in Uganda and Tanzania, the account says. It also points to a less visible legacy: engineers, welders, technicians, operators and local businesses gaining experience of international standards. The author argues that those capabilities can be carried into later projects, extending the pipeline’s value beyond the oil it is designed to move.

The next operational milestone to watch is the start of export loading from the two fields through Tanga. The article also says UNOC will attend ADIPEC in Abu Dhabi from November 2 to 5, 2026, where resilient and digitally enabled energy systems are a focus. For Uganda, the decisive test remains practical: completing the route and turning an underground resource into a working export business.