Construction of Uganda-Tanzania crude oil pipeline to start in March

Summary

• In September last year, President of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni, and his Tanzanian counterpart, John Magufuli, agreed to hasten the implementation of the Eacop project in a bilateral meeting held in Chato District in Geita.

By Alex Nelson Malanga

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Dar es Salaam. The construction of the $3.5 billion East African Crude Oil Pipeline (Eacop) is

scheduled to start next month, it was revealed yesterday.

Briefing journalists yesterday about his recent five-day official visit to France, Foreign Affairs minister Palamagamba Kabudi said Total Oil Company director for Africa Division Nicolas Terraz assured him that actual construction of the project would start in the second week of March.

“While in France I held talks with Total director who assured me that all is set for the construction of the pipeline to kick off in the second week of next month,” Prof Kabudi told a press conference.

In September last year, President of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni, and his Tanzanian counterpart, John Magufuli, agreed to hasten the implementation of the Eacop project in a bilateral meeting held in Chato District in Geita.

This was a follow-up meeting after Uganda signed the Host Government Agreement (HGA) with Total on the multibillion dollar Eacop Project.

The two leaders urged officials from both countries to expedite the harmonisation of pending issues and fast-track the remaining agreements including the Tanzanian HGA to fasten the implementation of the project.